Street violence - who's to blame?

The distressing subject of knife crime is once again making the headlines, particularly with the tragic death of teenager Rob Knox. This is a subject which touches everyone whether you fear being a victim or are a parent of teenagers. But what can be done about this and where does the finger point?

There are many who will say that parents need to take more responsibility for their children, but teenagers are in that that place where parents face a dilemma; they have to decide how much responsibility to hand over.

So to what extent can parents reasonably take responsibility for their children while at the same time allowing them the freedom to discover the world for themselves? The natural instinct of some parents may be to try and exert control over many aspects of their children’s lives – choice of friends, places they go and when they return home at night. Is this absolutely the right thing to do or could this lead to alienation and secrecy?

The police will say (and have said), that that they need the help of parents to tackle this. So when your teenager says they don’t carry a knife do you believe them?
In one case a parent described how she would search the teenager’s bedroom while they were out.

What do you think is the cause? Is a knife amnesty the answer? What should be done? What advice would you give to parents?

Life at what cost?

The headlines ‘Designer Babies’ and ‘Saviour Siblings’ are sometimes used to draw attention to what is a complex and highly emotive set of issue. Certainly the issues are highly divisive with religious, political, legal and emotional viewpoints coming into play.

Today MPs are debating proposals to change the law on the use of human embryos, and so the media will again be focusing on stories from around the country which reflect the human angles on this controversial discussion.Tonight, Calendar on ITV 1 at 6pm will report one particular story in which a boy has been born to a couple who want to use stem cells from his umbilical cord to treat an older brother with a life threatening blood disorder.

Of course, if the outcome is life for two children who can deny this? However issues arise where one embryo has been selected for genetic compatibility at the expense of others which are discarded. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has said it is acceptable to test and select embryos to prevent the birth of a baby with a genetic disease, but not to select them in order to help another child. While those supporting the protection of unborn children say that it is unacceptable to discard unwanted embryos.

So, where does this leave a couple wanting to give birth to a “Saviour Sibling”, where the life of one child may depend on another’s? Calendar will be raising the issues and inviting your text comments at 6pm this evening, and of course you can comment here on the ITV Local blog

(Mark Waddington, Channel Manager ITV Local Yorkshire)