Rio drops in to discuss gang culture

Rio Ferdinand spelt out his ideas on how best to tackle violent teen crime during a briefing with Tony Blair in No10.

The meeting with the Manchester United and England star follows a spate of recent gang-related incidents in London which has left six teenagers dead.

The pair discussed how best to prevent young people getting into violent gangs. Among the ideas were an after school club which would provide sports facilities and entertainment, but also career advice and mentoring.

They also spoke about the idea of forming a team of football ambassadors who could tour schools and talk to teens.

Rio and the PM originally met in Manchester in February after the Downing Street "gun summit".

More about the gun summit
Despite the recent tragic events, violent crime has fallen by a third over the last 10 years according to the British Crime Survey, widely regarded as the most authoritative view of crime trends.

The picture on overall gun crime is improving with measures being taken against gun crime are taking effect.

And the most recent police figures show gun crime has reduced by 13.7 per cent in London, with violent crime down 5.2 per cent.

ENDS