Following the murder of 11 year old Rhys Jones on Wednesday night in Croxteth Road, Liverpool, Simon Hughes MP for Southwark and Bermondsey commented:

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Fri 24th Aug 2007

''The recent rising trend in youth gun crime in the last 10 years is chilling. I believe that everything must be done to tackle this trend and it is therefore shocking for me that in this case people are reluctant to speak out against perpetrators of this kind of crime. The "Wall of Silence" that has met police investigations on estates in Liverpool is unacceptable to me in any case of gun crime against young people. I strongly urge anyone with information to come forward to police and make sure that this unpleasant characteristic of the investigation, where people are not willing to cooperate with police efforts, does not reoccur.

''As a London MP who has experience of dealing with gun crime within my constituency, I feel that this non-cooperation with police must be actively opposed in situations where young people have been targeted by gun crime. Communities must not close-up on these occasions but must behave responsibly, sending out a clear message to gangs that crime against young people is not tolerated, and calling on all possible witnesses to end crime and bring about justice.

''It is only collectively, in cooperation with the police, that communities can effectively bring an end to gang culture and gun crime against and amongst young people''.