A registered firearms dealer with customers either side of a force boundary runs two versions of the same business. Guidance is interpreted differently, service standards differ, and the wait a customer faces for the certificate that lets them complete a purchase is set by geography. BASC’s response to Friday’s police inspectorate report backs ending exactly that, and the trade consequence deserves stating plainly.

The association issued its response within hours, welcoming the recommendation for a single national firearms licensing authority to take over the functions currently delivered by 43 police forces, and rejecting the separate recommendation to bring shotgun certificates into line with Section 1 rules.

What would change in a dealer’s week?

Three things, if the authority is built. One interpretation of the guidance, which removes the variation an RFD currently absorbs when explaining to a customer why a neighbouring county did something differently. One service standard, which makes a delivery date something a shop can talk about rather than guess at. And one counterparty for queries, transfers and the referrals that presently go to whichever of the 38 licensing units is involved.

The revenue point sits underneath all of it. A grant delayed is a sale deferred, and BASC’s own report last year found some forces delivering a timely, proportionate service while others left certificate holders waiting more than a year. That variation is a working capital problem for the trade as much as an inconvenience for the customer.

What has BASC actually said?

Bill Harriman, the association’s director of firearms, said: “We welcome this report’s conclusion that firearms licensing cannot continue to be delivered through 43 separate police forces, each interpreting the same guidance differently, each resourced differently and each producing wildly different outcomes for applicants and certificate holders.”

The inspectorate’s backing “carries real weight”, he said, and the report “should settle any remaining argument about the direction of travel of firearms licensing in England and Wales”. The realism followed: “This will take years to deliver and will only succeed if the new authority is properly resourced and staffed with well-trained, specialist personnel from day one.”

On alignment the association was unequivocal, saying no proper evidence had been presented that moving shotgun certificates onto Section 1 rules would improve public safety, and that nothing had changed for shotgun certificate holders in the meantime.

Where does verification fit?

The British Shooting Sports Council backs a single professional licensing authority with real-time certificate verification, the digital check that would sit at the point of transfer and replace an assessment made by eye across a counter. For a dealer that is the recommendation with the most direct operational consequence: a genuine certificate confirmed in seconds, a forged one refused with confidence, and a defensible record of the check either way. No specification has been published.

The council also cautions that administrative failures “should not be confused with evidence that firearms law itself is fundamentally flawed”, which is the argument for separating the structural reform from the legislative package around it.

What happens next?

BASC is reviewing all 23 recommendations before publishing detailed analysis. The National Gamekeepers’ Organisation, which gave evidence to the inspection, warned that “simply changing the name above the door will not be enough” and that “new legislation is not a substitute for administering the existing law properly”. Any change needs a government decision, a consultation and legislation, and the consultation is where the trade’s operational evidence, transfer volumes, delay costs and counter experience, carries most weight.

Useful links

BASC – the association’s response to the inspectorate’s report in full

HMICFRS – the firearms licensing inspection report and its 23 recommendations

British Shooting Sports Council – the umbrella body’s position on the authority and real-time verification

Frequently asked questions

Would a national authority replace force licensing units?

That is the recommendation: one authority taking over applications, renewals and monitoring from the units run by 43 police forces. BASC supports it and says delivery would take years.

What would real-time verification mean at the point of transfer?

A digital check confirming a certificate is genuine, replacing an assessment made by eye. The British Shooting Sports Council backs it; no specification has been published.

Is the shotgun certificate regime changing?

Not currently. Alignment with Section 1 is a recommendation, rejected by BASC, with no consultation published and no legislation introduced.

Related articles

BSSC calls for a national approach to firearms licensing – the umbrella body’s earlier position on the same structure

Home Office non-statutory firearms guidance – the guidance framework the variation arises from

Moderator deregulation under the 2026 Act – the last legislative change to reach the counter