Last week I was very pleased to participate in a knife crime summit with the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, and other London MPs.

Given the recent spate of violent crimes commited with knives, people are understandably concerned about the safety of themselves and their children. I thought that our meeting was very positive: Jacqui outlined the work that the police have been doing, and in particular gave us an update on the progress of Operation Blunt - the police's new stop and search initiative in London, where thsoe found carrying knives are immediately arrested and charged.

Undoubtedly, crime and the fear of crime are extremely important for our community - however, it's important to remember a few things. First, crime has been falling consistently for over ten years, according to both the police's record of reported crime and the British Crime Survey. You are at a smaller risk of becoming a victim of crime than at any point in the history of crime records. For example, in the Tackling Gangs Action Programme (TGAP) areas (of which London is one), incidents of gun-related injuries have fallen by 51%. Secondly, despite the media hype, the risk of being a victim of knife crime is extremely low.

The problem is concentrated in small groups of people, amongst whom knife carrying has seemingly become almost routine. I'm pleased that the government has acted swiftly and responsibly - both with Operation Blunt, and with the new advertising campaign to raise awareness of the risks of carrying a knife amongst young people. I'm hopeful that we can follow the success TGAP has had with gun crime with knife crime, and see safer streets for everyone.