The mother of a 16-year-old stabbed to death in Haverhill has said the rejection of her anti-knife crime petition by the government is a ‘kick in the teeth’.
Bernice Barfield, whose son Harley was murdered in a knife attack on January 9 last year, started a petition to introduce a mandatory minimum sentence for anyone caught carrying a knife.
She set it up on Change.org and quickly achieved over 60,000 signatures on Change.org.
However, on speaking to her MP, Matt Hancock she learned it was government policy the petition would only be considered by parliament if it was done through the government’s online platform.
It has meant all of the signatures she had achieved on Change.org will not count and could not be carried over to the other platform, where she now has under 5,000.
She said: “It is a bit of a blow considering I had so many for the other petition.
“Getting so many signatures so quickly showed to me how important the issue is."
She said one factor is the government petition website is not as easy to share as Change.org.
Ms Barfield said: “It’s just a kick in the teeth. I’ve messaged others on Change.org telling them they might want to restart it through the government.
“This is massively important. Every single day there’s a new knife crime story. It’s madness.
“Kids are running around with knives like toys. Being excluded from school for a couple of days as a punishment is not enough.”
The government rules have been set this way since 2015 however members of the public can still ask their MP to present a paper petition to the House of Commons.
Guidance is available on the government website.
Mr Hancock urged people to support Ms Barfield's new petition.
A spokesperson for the West Suffolk MP said: “Matt is deeply moved by Bernice Barfield's courageous campaign to advocate for stronger anti-knife crime laws, following the tragic loss of her son.
“Clearly, Bernice's petition has struck a chord with a substantial number of individuals, garnering nearly 60,000 signatures in a relatively short period.
“Now her petition is on the Parliament Petition website and Matt urges people to sign this so that this important debate can take place.”
Click here to sign the government version.
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