Idris Elba is calling on the government to immediately ban the sale of so-called “zombie” knives and machetes, to reduce the number of young people losing their lives.
The Luther star told the BBC a planned law change to bring in the ban needs to be fast-tracked.
He accused politicians of not giving the issue “the focus it deserves”.
The government said it remains “committed to further intervention measures”.
It said it is banning zombie-style knives and added “more knife-carrying criminals are being given tougher sentences”.
Clothes to represent the victims of knife crime will be displayed in London’s Parliament Square on Monday.
Organisers hope the bundles of clothes will provide a visual demonstration of the huge human cost of knife crime to MPs returning from the Christmas recess.
The event is part of Elba’s Don’t Stop Your Future campaign, which works with local communities and well-known brands to try to tackle serious violence.
London-born Elba said he “can’t stay silent as young lives are lost to brutal and heartless crimes”.
‘A mother’s gut instinct’
Yemi Hughes, whose 19-year-old son Andre Aderemi was murdered in 2016, has given her support to Elba’s campaign – and has donated the outfit her son was wearing when he was killed.
Andre was stabbed multiple times in broad daylight in Croydon, south London.
Speaking to the BBC’s Radio 4 Today programme, Ms Hughes said that she had dropped her son off “with a heavy heart”.
“I don’t know why I said those words, I suppose it’s a mother’s gut instinct,” but he looked at me with a great big smile and said, ‘Don’t worry mum, I’ll be fine, I love you,” and with that I drove off.”
