sorry for the off topic
(but imho the question is answered already)
... I somehow was under the impression that knives (any!) are illegal in England.
:thinking:
(and not much better in Berlin also)
Our government and police (and the sheep who believe the almost outright lies that are often written the media) would like that to be the case, and are working slowly towards it, but they aren't there yet.
It is not illegal to actually
own any type of knife in the UK. However, it is illegal to acquire, sell, give, manufacture etc. certain types of knives that are listed somewhere. Examples of such knives are: automatic knives, push daggers, balisongs, knives with knuckle guards for punching, many martial arts weapons and curved swords. If you own one of these since
before the knife was added to the list, then that is OK to own. But don't ever try to sell it! The only thing you could legally do with it, other than keep it in your home, is to surrender it to the police.
Any knife not on that list is OK to own, buy, sell, whatever. I own many Busse knives, Fallknivens, Benchmade, etc. From big field knives to little folders. Nothing illegal about them and I can import them without issue (other than VAT etc).
Assisted openers are potentially a 'grey area' for us. They are not classed as automatic knives in UK law (which very clearly defines what an automatic knife is) but all of us UK knife people are just waiting for the police to take someone to court for having one, and claim that is is automatic. The chances are that the court would then rule that the assisted opener is now classed as an automatic knife. This will then become law - it's how our ridiculous system works. HMRC have been stopping some assisted openers completely of their own accord so importing one is risky. If the parcel gets checked (unlikely but possible) then it might get confiscated. So, the sensible people do not carry them on the street!
As to carrying knives in public (which includes in a vehicle as for some reason our cars are classed as public places in our law)...
Anything with a fixed or lockable blade, or with a blade in excess of 3 inches, is illegal to have in a public place without
good reason or lawful authority. That is, the owner must be able to justify and prove that he/she needs the knife, at that moment in time, for a specific purpose. Such as: work, hobby (like fishing or bushcraft). If the owner cannot prove such need, then he/she is committing the offence of having a knife illegally. The police are very keen on getting anyone they can for knife offences so if carrying such a knife, the owner really must
need it and be able to prove it. You are guilty until you prove your innocence here!
A non-locking folding knife with a blade of 3 inches or less is exempt from the above, unless on school property where it is still illegal to have. So, I EDC a Swiss Army Knife. No worries...
...unless a police officer decides that he wants to try to get me for
possession of an offensive weapon. This is a completely separate law from the above. A knife (unless it is one on the list) is not inherently an offensive weapon, even in the UK. It is a tool. If a knife is used or carried as a weapon though, or anyone thinks that it might be, then the offensive weapons act will be rolled out. Police officers like to search people and if they find a knife which is exempt from the above, they will accuse the owner of having an offensive weapon. A Swiss Army Knife??? Get real... but that's what they will try. In this case it is up to the police to prove possession of an offensive weapon. and unless the owner was doing something silly, then it would likely not even get to court. It might though, and the police will certainly try to make the owner think that they are in serious trouble even if they have done nothing whatsoever wrong. Welcome to England! The sensible people therefore do not carry any knife if going to the pub, night clubs, football or rugby matches etc, even though they would be doing nothing illegal whatsoever unless they
were carrying the knife for fighting with.
As a brief example of how our government and police try to manipulate all of this: Any attack or possession of anything with a blade or point, such as the common burglars tool the screwdriver, or even sticking a pencil into someone, is classified as a 'knife' crime and reported as such and used to make laws about knives which are in fact in the minority of such offences.
As a final note: Many police officers carry leatherman-type tools, with a locking blade. Since they could not give a specific reason for having the knife other than the 'just in case' that anyone might come up with (their job does not
require a knife in any way) they are breaking the law. I've never heard of one being arrested though...
Edit to add: It is illegal in the UK to buy or sell any knife described as a fighting knife or similar, as that makes it automatically an offensive weapon and thus illegal to acquire.