Less than two months have passed since Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, revealed a new plan of action to combat youth violence with the Tackling Gangs Action Programme.

It coincided with the start in London of Operation Blunt 2, a high-profile police campaign against knife crime, and Boris Johnson’s announcement that the issue would also be his key focus.

This weekend, with knife attacks and murders still apparently rising unchecked, Ms Smith is talking of “shock tactics” to bring teenagers to their senses.

Apparently this will involve dragging youths into casualty wards to show them the gory details of the damage that knives do to human flesh. Consultant surgeons in parts of South London already tour schools in trouble-spots, showing pictures of wounds and offering children graphic accounts of what happens when someone is stabbed.

The doctors also give a more accurate reflection of the scale of the problem than anything contained in crime statistics: one spoke earlier this year of treating 318 people with knife and gunshot wounds at one South London A&E unit over 12 months.

The Government’s latest attempt to find an answer to urban violence, or rather come up with a plausible-sounding initiative, looks like more political floundering. The appointment of a senior police officer to come up with another strategy might sound good but is not going to solve the problem.

The issues of youth gang violence are tied up with schools, communities and families, as well as policing. They will defy political quick fixes and cry out for fresh thinking and strong leadership.

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