The Home Office has launched a consultation on draft guidance relating to the implementation of the Offensive Weapons Act.

The Act relates to England, Scotland, and Wales and covers provisions relating to the sale and delivery of corrosive products and also bladed articles and bladed products.

The Act received Royal Assent on 16 May 2019 and requires the Secretary of State to produce statutory guidance which covers the implementation of certain measures within the act in England and Wales. It also covers the implementation of sections 1 to 4 of the act, in respect of the sale and delivery of corrosive products, in Scotland.

The draft statutory guidance sets out how the legislation should be implemented and applied, the obligations imposed under the act, and what factors should be taken into account when making decisions on how to proceed with individual cases of the possession, sale and delivery of knives, corrosives and offensive weapons, and the use of these to threaten others.

The Home Office is scheduled to speak at the November National Training Conference in the implementation of the Act including the guidance.

This consultation closes on 9 October 2019.