Sajid Javid says ‘middle class drug users’ are to blame for London’s spiralling knife crime numbers

The home secretary said middle-class people buying drugs are 'a part of the problem'

Home secretary Sajid Javid said "middle class drug users" are to blame for the record levels of knife crime in London. Fatal stabbings are at their highest number since the end of WW2, Javid said the illegal drug market's profit is one of the biggest causes of gang violence. [caption id="attachment_227833" align="alignnone" width="2048"] The home secretary said 'middle class drug users' were responsible for the record increase in knife crime (Credit: Jack Taylor)[/caption] Today, in a speech on crime barely capable of hiding his leadership ambitions, the Saj said: "The review will also bring home to middle class drug users that they are part of the problem. "They may never set foot in a deprived area. "They may never see an act of serious violence, but their illicit habits are adding fuel to the fire that is engulfing our communities." The secretary of state also restated the decision to adopt a public health approach in dealing with violent crime, as he wrote for JOE last week, arguing the "mindset of government needs to shift." https://twitter.com/PoliticsJOE_UK/status/1049680640587812869 Javid said: "Gangs recruit the most vulnerable young people. These children are at risk and we can detect early on who they are. "The kid that plays truant. The ones that get into fights. The pupils that struggle at school. Even though we can see the path to criminality, we still expect these children to make the right choices on their own." https://twitter.com/ukhomeoffice/status/1117812789995868161 The home secretary is not the first senior politician to apportion blame to London's illegal drugs market, mayor Sadiq Khan has also argued "middle class cocaine use" plays a significant role in causing violence in the capital.