What a fantastic idea the recent knife amnesty is, allowing residents to voluntarily give up these offensive weapons to the police.

Having read about his responsible attitude to keeping weapons before, I can only wish that the owner of Blue Moon Trading, in Goodramgate, York, will follow suit and hand over all of his stock. That way, those irresponsible knife-owners will be stopped in their tracks before an opportunity arises to be irresponsible with an offensive weapon on the city streets.

My friends and I have often pondered the circumstances under which one would purchase such an item as a replica Uzi machine gun or a pretend sawn-off shotgun.

I await the closing-down sale at Blue Moon, but fear that this would only ever happen as the result of an incident to encourage it.

Ben Sutton Heworth, York.