The Express and Star

How Many More?

2024

The Express and Star launched their campaign to crack down on the sale of killer zombie knives, machetes and swords after having to report on countless murders, involving the almost casual use of frightening weapons in the hands of young teenagers.

Cemented by a 47-minute Express & Star film called Grief, the newspaper teamed up with the family of Ronan Kanda, a 16-year-old attacked from behind in a case of mistaken identity. His attackers, who were just 17, bought a sword and a machete online with no checks.

The paper published a powerful front page – How Many More? – with a patchwork of the young faces lost to knife crime in recent years. The team said: “Every time a young murder happens, we run a roll-call of victims from recent years. It is as long as it is powerful.”

The campaign called on the then prime minister Rishi Sunak to bring forward new legislation to combat knife crime, which was sadly dropped at the call of the 2024 general election. The newspaper soon received a personal pledge from Sir Keir Starmer to tighten laws as a priority. He later wrote for the paper shortly after two 12-year-olds were jailed for the murder of a 19-year-old in Wolverhampton, again using machetes. New legislation was soon introduced in the King’s Speech.

The Express and Star said: “We have worked closely with the family of Ronan Kanda. His mother Pooja was among those who collaborated in the Grief documentary. We helped drive numbers for a 10,000-name petition taken to Downing Street. The proposed law to outlaw the sale of knives has become known as Ronan’s Law. Mark Brindley, father of James Brindley who was murdered in Walsall 2017, was also among those who bravely tell their unique and haunting stories of devastating loss in Grief.”

The documentary, Grief, aimed to illuminate the pervasive nature of the knife crime epidemic but also delved into the resilient spirit of those left behind, showcasing the indomitable strength that emerged in the face of tragedy. The paper continued: “The documentary is a campaign calling card on the devastating impact of knife crime and the desperate need to shut off the online trade that feeds it.

“It serves as a poignant call for awareness and change, challenging society to confront the harsh truths that echo in the shadows of our communities. By providing a platform for the voices of grieving parents, Grief humanises the statistics and compels viewers to re-evaluate the normalisation of knife crime.

“The message is ultimately “Enough is Enough!”

The campaign from the Express and Star to make Ronan’s Law a reality continues and the team continue to closely monitor its progress through Parliament.