Mother of stabbing victim says Scottish Government is 'dragging its heels' on youth knife crime measures

The useful part

Mum of stabbing victim accuses Scots Gov of 'dragging heels' over youth knife crime. Daily Record ‌ ‌ Skip to main content Mum of stabbing victim accuses Scots Gov of 'dragging heels' over youth knife crime Campaigner Lisa Petrie met with John Swinney to discuss her campaign efforts to tackle youth knife crime. Comments News Fionnuala Boyle 17:20, 07 Sep 2026 View 5 Images Lisa standing beside the 'Knife Angel' sculpture which has been erected at the bottom of Leith walk (Image:

How it works

• Following the meeting Lisa said it "didn't seem" like the Scottish Government planned to take action soon.
• Two teenage boys, aged 16 and 17, were cleared of his murder following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.
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• It comes after Swinney had last week backed the rollout of bleed kits in community settings across Scotland during his Programme for Government announcement, which promised to continue working with...
• Tony Nicoletti/Daily Record) The mum of a young man stabbed to death with a Rambo knife has accused the Scottish Government of "dragging its heels" on plans to tackle a "knife crime emergency".

What to take from it

‌ Lisa Petrie met with John Swinney and Justice Secretary Neil Gray on Monday over her campaign to tackle rising deadly youth knife crime in memory of her son. ‌ John McNab, 22, was chased down and stabbed with a hunting knife by a teenager in Leith on September 2, 2025. ‌ The 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was on bail for a separate knife attack on Portobello Beach months earlier.

Example or evidence

• ‌ She had also demanded answers over why his killer had been allowed to roam the streets on bail.
• "Victims of violent crime are being failed," the 45-year-old told the Record.
• ‌ "There was no real commitment or timeframe for the roll out of bleed kits or tighter security measures around the sale of knives.
• View 5 Images Lisa with her son John (Image: UGC) "The Scottish Government is dragging its heels.

Details worth keeping

More young people will die while we wait for decisions on potentially life-saving measures to be implemented. ‌ Justice Secretary Neil Gray said: "My thoughts continue to be with Lisa Petrie for her unimaginable loss and I am very grateful to her for meeting with me and the First Minister. Lisa has been tireless in her efforts to educate young people on the dangers of carrying knives since the loss of her son John, and I commend her for all she continues to do.