The number of stabbing incidents the police have to investigate on a regular basis, plus an attack in Bradford last year by two men wielding samuri swords who slashed three night-club bouncers, would suggest that the sale of knives and swords is something to be discouraged.

Yet it is not illegal. Shops can display these "ornamental" weapons openly, and people can buy them without anyone breaking any laws. The joint owner of one of these shops in Bradford says that people ask to buy these "fantasy knives" because they want to put them on show as ornaments.

If that is indeed all they want to do with them, then little harm is done. But what guarantees are there that they will only be used for that purpose? In the wrong hands they can become deadly weapons. And even if they aren't, surely they should be available only in specialist businesses, not glamorised by being displayed alongside sweets, cigarettes and mobile phones in city-centre shops.

Apart from anything else, it creates a poor impression in a city where a great deal of effort is being put into clamping down on violence and disorder to make the streets safe for the law-abiding public.

It is good to learn that consumer minister and Bradford MP Gerry Sutcliffe is taking up this issue with Trading Stand-ards officers, while Coun Clive Richard-son, deputy chairman of the West Yorkshire Police Authority, is to raise the matter with other UK authorities.

If these "ornamental" weapons are not to be banned entirely, there certainly need to be tighter regulations covering their sale and display.