Claims councils have been buying stab-proof vests in their ‘tens of thousands' have been played down by local government leaders. Following a spate of knife murders involving young people, the LGA underlined the need for councils to be ‘both sensible and proportionate' when considering how to protect their staff. A private sector firm had claimed it had received orders for up to 10,000 stab-proof vests from local government, mainly for NHS staff. The LGA refused to confirm the claim and said it was down to individual councils to decide how their staff are protected from violence. A spokesman said: ‘It is for each local authority to decide what measures need to be put in place to ensure their staff can get safely through the day. The safety of our workers is absolutely paramount, and councils will not hesitate to use the appropriate measures to deal with any risk of attack.'
