Dear GTA Member

Last Friday, His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) published its long-awaited report Firearms licensing: An inspection of firearms licensing across police forces in England and Wales.

While the GTA welcomes HMICFRS’ central recommendation to create a “single firearms licensing authority for England and Wales”, it believes some of the report’s 23 recommendations overlap with work already under way or with developments begun since the inspection was conducted. Furthermore, in most cases, the recommendations made lack evidential support. They are expressions of opinion rather than of facts.

With caution and subject to detailed issue-by-issue consideration, the GTA offers its conditional support for the rollout of the new National Firearms Licensing Portal (NFLP) after a comprehensive consultation with stakeholders. It also supports the full inclusion/integration of Police Scotland data into national firearms licensing performance data as well as within the new national firearms licensing operating framework. In particular, we are pleased to see the inclusion of functionality for RFDs mentioned within this section of the report.

The GTA is frustrated to see HMICFRS resurrecting the discredited idea of an alignment of Section 1 and Section 2 firearms licensing. This was a proposal roundly rejected by Parliamentarians early in the year. GTA’s own research suggests such an alignment would have a calamitous impact on the trade and shooting more generally. We have staunchly opposed any such ill-judged measure and will continue to do so.

Other measures that might be expected to have a negative impact on the trade include mandatory assessment for competence for shotgun applicants, costly and time-consuming in-person medical assessments, restrictions placed on visitor permits, a further tightening of guidance and its enforcement on a statutory basis. The UK is already acknowledged to have some of the strictest firearms licensing in the world. There is no evidence presented in the report to demonstrate that these measures would enhance public safety sufficiently to justify their likely impact on the trade and legitimate firearms users.

If the creation of a firearms licensing tribunal could help bring an end to lengthy and expensive court proceedings, then such a tribunal would be welcome. However, we would expect to see the trade represented on that panel along with other key expert stakeholders.

The most effective way to reform England and Wales’ broken firearms licensing system is for the Home Secretary to take forward HMICFRS’ central recommendation for a national firearms licensing agency. The GTA looks forward to playing its part in the design and delivery of such an agency.

Stephen Jolly, Chief Executive The Gun Trade Association