How Labour is planning the most restrictive gun laws for 30 years

A farmer could have to store his shotgun at a nearby gun shop, meaning they would not be able to access it on Sundays to deal with predators attacking their livestock

The UK Government’s announcement that it is to consult on “aligning the controls on shotguns with other firearms” cannot hide what could be the most wide-ranging and restrictive changes to gun ownership for 30 years.

To some, a shotgun is a wildly misunderstood piece of equipment, yet it is a daily part of rural life across the UK and is relied upon to control some abundant predators that would otherwise decimate lambs and endangered species, such as our beloved lapwing and curlew.

One measure under consideration is that a shotgun may have to be stored securely away from the home address, which means that a farmer would have to watch their flock being torn to pieces from Saturday evening until 9am on Monday, when they would be able to access their shotgun at a gun shop.

The UK is one of the safest countries in the world when it comes to legitimately possessed guns and, under Section 2 of the Firearms Act 1968, shotguns are already regulated so that only those who pass stringent medical and background checks may be granted a licence to possess one.

Reform of the firearms licensing system is necessary but the UK Government appears to be planning changes to the law that could have a serious effect on farmers, others in rural communities and sport shooters (Picture: Lars Baron) | Getty Images

Licensing system needs reform, not the law

Licensing shotguns as Section 1 firearms – largely rifles – would have a devastating impact on the entire sector, not to mention those guns held for sporting purposes, such as those used by our magnificent and successful Olympic shooting team.

This stems from the government’s desire to reduce the incidence of lethal misuse of licensed firearms, but it does not address the fundamental problem, which is the licensing system, not the law. We have seen a small number of instances whereby failings in the administration of the grant of licenses have allowed someone to be in possession of a shotgun when it simply should never have been allowed to happen.

Poor decisions were made by licensing authorities in some of the 43 police force areas in England and Wales, and these resulted in some devastating consequences. Police Scotland seem to have got it right and now have a system in place that works country-wide and works well, with no real backlog to speak of and an information-sharing system that is far less likely to miss a critical anomaly.

Improving public safety

That said, this is not what our UK police forces should be doing as they have neither the time nor the resources to administer this system properly, a situation which has sadly proven to have fatal consequences.

If the government is concerned about improving public safety it should, therefore, first be looking to create a single, centralised firearms licensing body with full digitisation to replace the current outdated system. An effective body similar to the DVLA system for driving licences would improve public safety, provide a consistent service for gun owners and allow police forces to focus on law enforcement, rather than licensing – a function they were never set up to do.

Consultations carried out by governments tend to be an exercise in confirming their direction of travel rather than any real attempt to collate opinion. That is why we are asking you to lobby your MP before the new firearms consultation is launched. If that consultation does not focus on the underlying failure of the licensing system, it will not achieve the aim of improving public safety.

Jake Swindells is director of the Scottish Countryside Alliance