£1.2m aid pledged for girls raped in gang wars

Home Secretary Theresa May said girls are being used as weapons in disputes as she launched the plans yesterday, pledging to bring together a raft of agencies to tackle rising youth violence. She pledged at least £1.2m over the next three years to improve services for young victims of sexual violence in major urban areas.

Mrs May admitted that girls could also be involved in gang violence themselves, but added: “More often they would be the victims.

“They would be the partners of gang members. They would find themselves being abused and sometimes being used as weapons – raping a rival gang leader’s girlfriend to get back at that gang.”

Ministers also plan to offer the chance for any former gang member who wants to escape their old lifestyle to be rehoused.

A 100-stong task force of experts will also be brought in to provide practical advice and support to areas with a serious youth violence problem.

The move is part of plans to tackle young people at risk of being drawn into gangs and violence at every stage of their lives, including as troubled toddlers.

Youth workers could be placed in hospital A&E departments to pick up and refer young people who come in for treatment for knife wounds, and young offenders with mental health needs or substance misuse problems could be diverted to specific schemes when they are arrested.

“Gang and youth violence is not a problem that can be solved by enforcement alone,” Mrs May said. “We need to change the life stories of young people currently ending up dead or wounded on our streets or locked in a cycle of reoffending.”

Under the plans, set out in the cross-Government report Ending Gang And Youth Violence, gang members who trade in guns could face life in jail following reports that the same guns are being traded between gangs and used in many different attacks.

Mrs May is considering bringing in a new offence of possession of an illegal firearm with intent to supply, with a maximum sentence of life in prison.

The proposals could also see anyone convicted of illegally importing weapons face up to 14 years in prison, instead of the current 10.

So-called gang injunctions will also be extended to 14-17-year-olds, enabling authorities to ban gang members from wearing distinctive colours or from entering rival territory. They also give civil courts the power to ban people from using dogs as weapons.

The report also emphasised that gangs cannot simply be seen as an issue for the police – other agencies, including health, education, housing and job centres, should see preventing violence as part of their broader aims too.

Outlining the plans in the Commons, Mrs May said the 100-strong task force, known as Ending Gangs and Youth Violence teams, would involve community activists, NHS experts and police officers.

She added: “For too long communities have lived in fear of gangs. Many young lives have been ruined; many young lives have been lost.

“This summer showed that it is time for society to take a stand.”

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper warned that cuts to police and youth services will make it harder for the Government to tackle gang violence.

Ministers’ “rhetoric” on dealing with gang culture did not match the reality of cuts to police officer numbers and programmes aimed at tackling youth crime, she said.

Professor Liz Kelly, of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, said: “We know that girls are particularly affected by gang-related sexual violence, but also sexual violence more generally.”