Yvette Cooper says knife sales to Westcountry young people is a 'total disgrace'

The Shadow Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, says its a "total disgrace" that shops in the West Country will happily sell knives to young people.

Earlier this week, Avon and Somerset Police revealed weapons were sold to children as young as 13 during a recent operation to test shop's policies.

As part of the operation, police cadets visited 80 shops across Avon and Somerset with support from plain-clothed officers, in an attempt to purchase a knife or bladed weapon. This included large retailers and supermarkets as well as private and independently owned shops.

Police say that whilst the majority of retailers refused to sell, 10 retailers unlawfully sold a knife or bladed article to underage cadets. In one instance, a machete-style knife was sold to a young cadet.

Speaking to us during a visit to Bristol yesterday, Yvette Cooper says more must be done to stop it: "There's got to be much stronger action on this. We want to see stronger laws on the online sales, but we also want to see stronger enforcement as well, because ultimately otherwise it's putting more lives at risk."

• knives