Registered firearms dealers end the year with the shotgun licensing threat on hold rather than gone, a coalition standing against it and their own trade body about to rebuild its systems. The Gun Trade Association’s chairman, Oskar Waktare, told members in his report to the association’s annual general meeting, published on 10 November, that it had been one of the busiest years on record and that the proposal to review Section 1 and Section 2 licensing had consumed much of the first half of it.

What did the Section 2 threat cost the trade?

The review, which would move shotguns closer to firearm-certificate controls, used a great deal of the association’s time and resources before it “may have been kicked into the long grass by the current Home Secretary”, Mr Waktare said. He thanked members who contributed to a research project showing the damage such reforms could do to the trade and the wider UK economy.

The threat galvanised the sector. Working with the Shooting Industry Fund, the association took a leading role in bringing 16 organisations together under the British Shooting Sports Council (BSSC) to oppose changes to shotgun controls that it says cannot be justified on public safety grounds. The chairman called it regrettable that the August report on police firearms licensing from His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) “saw fit to resurrect this proposal”, and said the association understood the report had met a muted response from Home Office officials.

The help desk year, from private sales to Parcelforce

The help desk was busier than ever and the association’s registered firearms dealer training courses were oversubscribed. Members brought questions on the new Home Office guidance, licensing delays, the proposed ban on private sales of firearms, continuing lead restrictions, an import-control testing regime for blank-firing guns, the Online Safety Act and the new public-facing National Firearms Licensing Portal.

The association also walked members through changes to Parcelforce’s systems and the removal of sound moderators from licensing, for which it and the BSSC drafted the official guidance the Home Office published. Looking ahead to the Home Secretary’s police reform plans, it is arguing with its sister organisations for a single national firearms licensing agency in place of the police forces’ separate departments.

What will dealers be asked next?

Technical director Paul Green has extended the association’s training to Section 5 providers and is working towards continuing professional development accreditation for his courses. A survey due in the new year will test members’ appetite for further training, including professional qualifications for dealers’ staff and a customised pre-renewal audit product for registered firearms dealers.

A legal column published by the association on the same day adds a customer-facing warning: forces often reach refusal and revocation decisions on adverse information without giving the applicant the opportunity to comment that paragraph 3.16 of the Home Office statutory guidance requires, and it advises anyone called to a so-called suitability review interview to ask what it will cover and to take someone with them. A customer whose renewal stalls on that road is a customer who cannot take a gun home.

A virtual association with new systems

The association is now fully virtual, with operations manager Elaine Gallen running the website and membership database, and membership stands at well over 400. It is exploring growth overseas and in the defence sector. Over the next few weeks members will see a new IT system, a new customer relationship management system, a new website and refreshed branding, with enhanced financial reporting and improved workflow systems behind them.

At the council table, David Stapley stepped down during the year and Sean O’Driscoll of Rothery’s steps down at the meeting, while Alex Levett-Scrivener of Shooting Star has been co-opted. The report mourns John Batley, the association’s former director, as one of the trade’s great champions.

What happens next

The systems and branding land over the coming weeks and the training survey follows in the new year. The licensing question sits with the Home Office: whether it adopts the inspectorate’s recommendation to align shotgun certification with Section 1 in the firearms legislation signalled for this Parliament, and whether police reform delivers the single licensing agency the trade wants. The chairman’s report is published in full on the association’s website.

Useful links

Gun Trade Association – the chairman’s report to the 2026 annual general meeting

British Shooting Sports Council – the umbrella body under which the 16-organisation coalition sits

His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services – the inspectorate whose August report revived the review

Frequently asked questions

How many members does the Gun Trade Association have?

Well over 400, according to the chairman’s report to the 2026 annual general meeting. The association is now fully virtual and is exploring membership overseas and in the defence sector.

Who is in the coalition opposing shotgun licensing changes?

Sixteen organisations brought together by the Gun Trade Association and the Shooting Industry Fund under the British Shooting Sports Council. The report does not publish the full list.

When will the dealer staff qualifications survey go out?

In the new year, the report says. It will test appetite for professional qualifications for dealers’ staff and for a customised pre-renewal audit product for registered firearms dealers.

Related articles

Shotgun licensing review revived by inspectorate report, says GTA – the ShootingUK telling for certificate holders

BASC backs single licensing authority but rejects Section 2 shift – the sector’s first answer to the inspectorate’s report

Sussex firearms licensing backlog leaves hundreds waiting months – the delays behind the single-agency argument

Retailers told to tighten knife marketing at Home Office summits – the other compliance ask on the trade this autumn