Section 60 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994, gives police the right to search people in a defined area at a specific time when they believe, with good reason, that: there is the possibility of serious violence; or that a person is carrying a dangerous object or offensive weapon; or that an incident involving serious violence has taken place and a dangerous instrument or offensive weapon used in the incident is being carried in the locality. This law has to be authorised by a senior officer and is used mainly to tackle football hooliganism and gang fights.
from
http://www.met.police...hat_is.htm#stopsearch
What draconian measures would you propose over and above what already exists?
I would support a new mandatory three year jail sentence (with a massive publicity campaign prior to introduction) for anyone caught carrying an offensive weapon - however, this would be like putting a icepack on the forehead of someone suffering from a migraine. It might relieve the pain, but the underlying symptoms would still exist.