Dear Chief Secretary to the Treasury,
I'm afraid to tell you there's no money left.
Signed, Liam Byrne

(Outgoing Labour Chief Secretary to the Treasury. May 2010)
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Monday 11 January 2010

Myleene was mistaken.

Myleene Klass hit the weekend headlines by saying she was told by police that waving a kitchen knife at an intruder in her garden was illegal - because a knife is an offensive weapon.

Some people have pointed out that for the law to work such a weapon has to be waved about in a public place, and a kitchen doesn't count, and even if it did it would mean that anybody whose kitchen faces the pavement could be locked up every time they chop carrots in full view of passer's by.

Anyhow, it looks as if Myleene must have been mistaken, because according to the BBC a spokeswoman for Police said
"at no point" were any warnings given
In case nobody noticed that little phrase it's repeated at length a bit later
a statement from Hertfordshire police said: "Officers spoke to reassure the home owner, talked through security and gave advice in relation to the importance of reporting suspicious activity immediately to allow officers to act appropriately."

It added: "For clarification, at no point were any official warnings or words of advice given to the home owner in relation to the use of a knife or offensive weapon in their home." "

And again, in another article.

She was, according to her spokesman, later warned by police officers that carrying an "offensive weapon" was illegal in her own home. The allegation is vehemently denied by Hertfordshire Police

and just to be sure, the same article repeats itself a bit, and fleshes it out a bit, to make the point more effectively

And for the record Hertfordshire Police say they didn't tell Klass off at all about her knife-waving.

"Officers spoke to reassure the home owner, talked through security and gave advice in relation to the importance of reporting suspicious activity immediately to allow officers to act appropriately," says a spokeswoman.

"For clarification, at no point were any official warnings or words of advice given to the home owner in relation to the use of a knife or offensive weapon in their home."

So there you have it. All the media and blogging fuss was for nothing - because it didn't happen.

The BBC doesn't say why, or how, Myleene might have been confused and they don't say she made it up, or maybe she imagined it, or maybe she was hearing things. But it's absolutely clear that Myleene Klass was not told it is illegal to stand in her kitchen waving a carving knife at a potential intruder she can see through the window.

Maybe the Telegraph will edit the story from last Friday to make sure it's right.

Myleene Klass, the broadcaster and model, brandished a knife at youths who broke into her garden – but has been warned by police that she may have acted illegally.
and Chris Grayling will have to backtrack
Chris Grayling, the shadow home secretary, said: "This incident just shows why things are still very confused on this issue and why we need a change in the law."

1 comment:

Unknown said...

The police are self-serving liars. Filth. Spin.