Walmart steps up 'knife control' in Britain

The Walmart-owned British supermarket chain Asda is going to stop selling single kitchen knives following a spate of stabbings in the country.

Asda, one of the Big Four supermarket chains in the United Kingdom, said in a statement that "the decision to stop selling these items comes in response to rising concerns about knife crime in the UK, particularly those involving children and young people."

"We strongly believe that we have a responsibility to support the communities that we serve," senior vice president Nick Jones said. "Whilst we have already taken steps to restrict the sale of knives to ensure that they do not fall into the wrong hands, we felt there was more we could be doing to support those looking at how to bring this issue under control."

"Control" is the issue, as stricter and stricter knife control has taken hold in the UK. It is already illegal to sell individual knives to anyone under 18. A discount retail variety chain in the UK, Poundlands, last year banned the sale of knives altogether in their own stores.

The "Big Four" grocery stores are Tesco, Asda, Sainsburys, and Morrisons. Asda is owned by American giant Walmart. As the Washington Free Beacon's Stephen Gutowski noted on Twitter, Walmart has also limited gun sales here in the United States.

Earlier this month, 17-year-old Jodie Chesney was fatally stabbed in a park in London in what police have characterized as a random attack. A man charged in the attack was in court on Tuesday this week. Following the incident there have been renewed cries for knife control in England and the UK at large.