SCHOOLS and shopkeepers have been urged to join the fight against knife crime carried out by teenagers in York and North Yorkshire.

In the first six months of this year, North Yorkshire Police recorded eight robberies involving the use of knives.

Police told York MP Hugh Bayley almost every case was a "kid-on-kid" crime - with teenagers using the weapon to demand a bike or mobile phone.

Speaking in the Commons, Mr Bayley declared York was still one of the safest cities in the country, but he wanted a crackdown on the use of knives to stop the problem escalating. Mr Bayley said schools should join police to educate youngsters of the risks and penalties of carrying the weapons.

He also called on shop owners to make sure they only sold knives to adults.

During Home Office questions, Mr Bayley said: "York is one of the safest cities in the country, which is one of the reasons why it attracts so many visitors. But nevertheless there has been quite a significant increase in robbery - a threefold increase over the last three years."

Mr Bayley asked what was the Government was doing to help forces like North Yorkshire Police tackle the problem. New Home Office Minister Caroline Flint told him: "Although North Yorkshire is not in the street crime initiative area, I hope your local area and the wider area of North Yorkshire will benefit from the wider lessons learnt from the initiative through the spread of best practice."

Updated: 10:39 Tuesday, June 17, 2003