'Stop this madness'

His appeal follows an incident in the Abbeyglen area of Whiteabbey last weekend during which a teenager was stabbed in the back with a screwdriver.

“Some young people said to me that they carry knives or screwdrivers because they know others do and therefore it makes them feel safer, but I want to emphasise the point that some young innocent person could die as a result of this madness,” the Macedon representative told the Times.

“To change this culture of violence in Newtownabbey we need to educate young people to help them understand the consequences of carrying a knife or an offensive weapon,” he added.

Alderman Kirkham has called for a “summit meeting” involving elected representatives, youth organisations, the PSNI, schools, community groups and young people themselves in a bid to devise an education programme to highlight the dangers of carrying knives and other weapons.