Gun politics

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Gun politics in the United Kingdom, in similarity with gun politics in Australia, places its main considerations on how best to ensure public safety and how deaths involving firearms can most effectively be prevented. There is practically no organised "right to keep and bear arms" lobby in the United Kingdom, and little debate between pro-gun control and pro-shooting advocates. These two situations create what is believed to be some of the strictest gun legislation in the world ^{[1] [2]}. It has been suggested that Gun politics worldwide be merged into this article or section. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Australia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Brazil. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Canada. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Finland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Mexico. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_South_Africa. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Switzerland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_States. ... In Australia, conflict over gun politics is related to cultural tensions. ... The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, part of the Bill of Rights, prevents the federal government from infringing on the right to keep and bear firearms. ...

Licensing and legislation

All firearms in the United Kingdom with the exception of low-powered airguns must be licensed on either a firearm certificate (FAC) or a shotgun certificate. Air guns are weapons that propel a bullet using compressed air or another gas, possibly liquefied. ... A pump-action and two semi-automatic action Remington 1100 shotguns, 20 boxes of shotgun shells, a clay trap, and three boxes of clay pigeons. ...

Shotguns are defined in UK law as smoothbore firearms with barrels not shorter than 24" and a bore not larger than 2", no revolving cylinder, and either no magazine, or a non-detachable magazine that is not capable of holding more than two cartridges^[3]. This effectively gives a maximum three round overall capacity. Shotguns thus defined are subject to a slightly less rigorous certification process. Smoothbore refers to a firearm which does not have a rifled barrel. ...

A firearm certificate differs from a shotgun certificate in that justification must be provided to the police for each firearm; these firearms are individually listed on the certificate by type, calibre, and serial number. A shotgun certificate similarly lists type, calibre and serial number, but permits ownership of as many shotguns as can be safely accommodated. To gain permission for a new firearm, a "variation" must be sought, for which a fee is payable, unless the variation is made at the time of renewal, or unless it constitutes a one-for-one replacement of an existing firearm which is to be disposed of. The certificate also sets out, by calibre, the maximum quantities of ammunition which may be bought/possessed at any one time, and is used to record the purchasing of ammunition (except, optionally, where ammunition is both bought, and used immediately, on a range).

To obtain a firearm certificate, the police must be convinced that a person has "good reason" to own each gun, and that they can be trusted with it "without danger to the public safety or to the peace". Under Home Office guidelines, gun licences are only issued if a person has legitimate sporting or work-related reasons for owning a gun. Since 1946, self-defence has not been considered a valid reason to own a gun. The current licensing procedure involves: positive verification of identity, two referees of verifiably good character who have known the applicant for at least two years (and who may themselves be interviewed and/or investigated as part of the certification), approval of the application by the applicant's own family doctor, an inspection of the premises and cabinet where guns will be kept and a face-to-face interview by a Firearms Enquiry Officer (FEO) also known as a Firearms Liaison Officer (FLO). A thorough background check of the applicant is then made by Special Branch on behalf of the firearms licensing department. Only when all these stages have been satisfactorily completed, will a licence be issued. Self-defense usually refers to the use of violence to protect oneself and is a possible justification for this otherwise illegal act. ... Special Branch is the arm of the British, Irish and many Commonwealth police forces that deals with national security matters. ...

Any person who has spent more than three years in prison is automatically banned for life from obtaining a gun licence.^[4]

Any person holding a gun licence must comply with strict conditions regarding such things as safe storage. These storage arrangements are checked by the police before a licence is first granted, and on every renewal of the licence. A local police force may impose additional conditions on ownership, over and above those set out by law. Failure to comply with any of these conditions can mean forfeiture of the gun licence and surrender of any firearms to the police.

The penalty for possession of a prohibited firearm without a certificate is currently a mandatory minimum five year prison sentence and an uncapped fine.^[5]

In addition, the proposed Violent Crime Reduction Bill, if passed, would increase restrictions on the use, ownership, sale and manufacture of both airguns and imitation firearms. [2] Air guns are weapons that propel a bullet using compressed air or another gas, possibly liquefied. ...

History of gun control in the United Kingdom

As English subjects, Protestants had a conditional right to possess arms according to the Bill of Rights.^[6] The Bill of Rights 1689 is an Act of the Parliament of England (1 Will. ...

The rights of English subjects, and, after 1707, British subjects, to possess arms was recognised under English Common Law. Sir William Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England, were highly influential and were used as a reference and text book for English Common Law. In his Commentaries, Blackstone described the right to arms.^[7] Sir William Blackstone, (July 10, 1723 – February 14, 1780) was an English jurist and professor who produced the historical treatise on the common law called Commentaries on the Laws of England, first published in four volumes over 1765–1769. ...

Formerly, this same British common law applied to the UK and Australia, as well as until 1791 to the Colonies in North America that became the United States. The right to keep and bear arms had originated in England during the reign of Henry II with the 1181 Assize of Arms, and developed as part of Common Law. These rights no longer exist in the UK, since the UK's doctrine of Parliamentary supremacy allows the repeal of previous laws with no enshrined exceptions such as contained within a codified constitution. Henry II of England (5 March 1133 – 6 July 1189) ruled as Count of Anjou, Duke of Normandy, and as King of England (1154–1189) and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland[], eastern Ireland, and western France. ... Please wikify (format) this article as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... This article concerns the common-law legal system, as contrasted with the civil law legal system; for other meanings of the term, within the field of law, see common law (disambiguation). ... Parliamentary sovereignty or Parliamentary supremacy is the concept in British constitutional law that a parliament has sovereignty. ...

Modern restrictions on gun ownership began in 1903, with the Pistols Act. This required a person to obtain a gun licence before they could buy a firearm with a barrel shorter than 9 inches. The "gun licence" had been introduced as a revenue measure in 1870; the law required a person to obtain a licence if he wanted to carry a gun outside his home, whether for hunting, self-defense, or other reasons, but not to buy one. The licences cost 10 shillings, which is about £31 in 2005 money, lasted one year, and could be bought over the counter at post-offices.

A registration system gun law - the Firearms Act - was first introduced to Great Britain in 1920, spurred on partly due to fears of a surge in crime that might have resulted from the large number of guns available following World War I and in part due to fears of working class unrest in this period. The law did not initially affect smoothbore weapons, which were available for purchase without any form of paperwork. Combatants Allied Powers: British Empire France Italy Russia United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary Bulgaria Germany Ottoman Empire Commanders Ferdinand Foch Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna Armando Diaz Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Herbert Henry Asquith Douglas Haig John Jellicoe Woodrow Wilson John Pershing Wilhelm II Paul...

Fully automatic weapons were almost completely banned from private ownership by the 1937 Firearms Act, which took its inspiration from the US 1934 National Firearms Act ^{[citation needed]}. Such weapons are nowadays only available to certain special collectors, museums and prop companies. The 1937 Act also consolidated changes to the 1920 Act that controlled shotguns with barrels shorter than 20". This length was later raised by the 1965 Firearms act to 24". M2 machine gun An automatic firearm is a firearm that will continue to load and fire rounds of ammunition as long as the trigger (or equivalent) is activated or until it runs out of ammunition. ... The National Firearms Act (NFA), cited as the Act of June 26, 1934, Ch. ...

The first control of long-barreled shotguns began in 1967 with the Criminal Justice Act. This required a person to obtain a "Shotgun Certificate" to own any shotgun. The Act did not require the registration of shotguns, only licensing.

Changes in public attitudes in the 1970s and 1980s changed the basis on which firearms were perceived and understood in British society. Increasingly graphic portrayals of firearms involved in gratuitous acts of violence in the mass media gave rise to concern of the emergence of an aggressive "gun culture". A steady rise in violent gun crime in general also became an issue of concern. This period saw a change of attitude within the government away from legislating to preclude a violent civil uprising to legislating to ensure public safety and prevent crime, with the most radical changes being introduced in the aftermath of a specific incident. Mass media is a term used to denote, as a class, that section of the media specifically conceived and designed to reach a very large audience (typically at least as large as the whole population of a nation state). ... The gun culture is one shared by people on one of two sides in the gun politics debate, generally those who advocate preserving gun rights and who are against more gun control. ...

Hungerford massacre

Main article: Hungerford massacre

In 1987, 27 year old Michael Ryan, armed with a semi-automatic AK-47, a Beretta handgun and a fragmentation grenade, dressed up in combat fatigues and proceeded around the town of Hungerford killing or wounding almost everyone he met, in what became known as the Hungerford massacre. Michael Robert Ryan The Hungerford massacre occurred in Hungerford, Berkshire, England, on August 19, 1987. ... Avtomat Kalashnikova model 1947 g. ... Logo of Pietro Beretta This article is about a firearm manufacturer; for the car, see Chevrolet Beretta. ... A hand grenade is a hand-held bomb, made to be thrown by a soldier. ... Hungerford is a market town by the River Kennet in the English county of Berkshire. ...

In the aftermath, the Conservative government passed the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988. This banned semiauto and pump-action centrefire rifles, military weapons firing explosive ammunition, and short shotguns that had magazines; and elevated pump-action and self-loading rifles into the Prohibited category. Registration and secure storage of weapons held on shotgun certificates became required, and shotguns with more than a 2+1 capacity came to need a Firearms certificate. The law also introducted new restrictions on shotguns, although rifles in .22 rimfire and semi-automatic pistols were unaffected. The Conservative Party (officially the Conservative & Unionist Party) is currently the second largest political party in the United Kingdom in terms of sitting Members of Parliament (MPs), and the largest in terms of public membership. ... (Redirected from . ... A Browning 9 millimeter Hi-Power Ordnance pistol of the French Navy, 19th century, using a Percussion cap mechanism Derringers were small and easily hidden. ...

Dunblane massacre

Main article: Dunblane massacre

Eight years after the Hungerford massacre, the Dunblane Massacre was the second time in less than a decade that unarmed civilians had been killed in Britain by a legally-licensed gun owner. On March 13, 1996 Thomas Hamilton, aged 43, a disgruntled former scout leader who had been ousted by The Scout Association five years previously, shot dead sixteen young children and their teacher, Gweneth Mayor, in Dunblane Primary School's gymnasium with his legally-licensed weapons and ammunition. He then shot himself. There is a memorial to the seventeen victims in the local cemetery and a cenotaph in the cathedral. The funds raised in the aftermath of the tragedy have been used to build a new community centre for the town. The Dunblane massacre was a multiple homicide which occurred at the primary school in the town of Dunblane, Scotland on 13 March 1996. ... March 13 is the 72nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (73rd in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... Thomas Hamilton Thomas Watt Hamilton (May 10, 1952 – March 13, 1996) was a Scottish mass murderer, who committed the Dunblane massacre, in which he killed sixteen small children and a teacher in a primary school, and then subsequently committed suicide. ... It has been suggested that Gimmie 5 be merged into this article or section. ... The Cenotaph, London A ceremony at the Cenotaph, London, on Sunday 12th June 2005, remembering Irish war dead Memorial Cenotaph, Hiroshima, Japan A cenotaph is a tomb or a monument erected in honor of a person or group of persons whose remains are elsewhere. ...

Following the incident, the government passed the Firearms (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1997 which means that as of 1997 handguns have been almost completely banned for private ownership, although the official inquiry, known as the Cullen Inquiry, did not go so far as to recommend such action.^[8] Exceptions to the ban include muzzle-loading "blackpowder" guns, pistols produced before 1917, pistols of historical interest (such as pistols used in notable crimes, rare prototypes, unusual serial numbers and so on), starting pistols, pistols that are of particular aesthetic interest (such as engraved or jewelled guns) and shot pistols for pest control. Even Britain's Olympic shooters fall under this ban; as a result of this law, the British pistol shooting team must train outside the country.^[9] The Firearms (Amendment) (No. ... 1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Reef. ... Lord Cullen has conducted enquiries or inquiries into two major British disasters, both of which are known as the Cullen Inquiry or Cullen Enquiry: The Dunblane Massacre of schoolchildren, 13 March 1996. ... The five Olympic rings were designed in 1913, adopted in 1914 and debuted at the Games at Antwerp, 1920. ...

The 2012 Olympics

Following the awarding of the 2012 Olympic Games to London, the government announced that special dispensation would be granted to allow the various shooting events to go ahead, as had been the case previously for the 2002 Commonwealth Games.^[9] The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXX Olympiad, will be held in London, United Kingdom from 27 July to 12 August 2012. ... The 2002 Commonwealth Games were held in Manchester, England from July 25 to August 4. ...

Comparison with other countries

Despite its high crime rate^[10] Britain's has a murder rate per capita has increased since the handgun ban. 853 murders in the reporting period 2003/04 according to the Home Office's Crime Statistics. The UK's population is more than 60 million, which translates into fewer than 1.3 murders per 100,000 residents in the UK.^[11] By comparison, in 2000, police in the United States reported 5.5 murders for every 100,000 population.^[12] In addition, 70% of murders in the United States involve firearms but 75% of these murders are with illegally purchased handguns compared to 6% in the United Kingdom which is a higher rate than prior the 1997 ban.^[13] Both New York City and London have over 7 million residents, with New York reporting 6.9 murders per 100,000 people in 2004 to London's 2.4 per 100,000, also in 2004.^[14] Nickname: Big Apple, City that never Sleeps, Gotham Location in the state of New York Coordinates: Country United States State New York Boroughs The Bronx Manhattan Queens Brooklyn Staten Island Settled 1613 Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) Area    - City 1,214. ... London (pronounced ) is the capital city of the United Kingdom and the largest city of England (strangely, England has no constitutional existence within the United Kingdom, and therefore cannot be said to have a capital). ...

Relevant acts of Parliament

The following information is released under Crown Copyright by the Office of Public Sector Information. Crown copyright is a form of copyright claim used by the governments of the United Kingdom and a number of other Commonwealth realms. ... The Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) is the new body incorporating Her Majestys Stationery Office (usually abbreviated as HMSO). ...

• Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 (c. 45)
• Statutory Instrument 1989 No. 853 (C.23) - The Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 (Commencement No. 2) Order 1989
• Statutory Instrument 1989 No. 854 - The Firearms Rules 1989
• Statutory Instrument 1989 No. 889 (S.90) - The Firearms (Scotland) Rules 1989
• Firearms (Amendment) Act 1992 (c. 31)
• Statutory Instrument 1992 No. 2823 - The Firearms Acts (Amendment) Regulations 1992
• Firearms (Amendment) Act 1994
• Statutory Instrument 1994 No. 2615 - The Firearms (Variation of Fees) Order 1994
• Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997
• Firearms (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1997
• Statutory Instrument 2002 No. 127 - The Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 (Firearms Consultative Committee) Order 2002
• Firearms (Northern Ireland) Order 2004 No. 7
• Draft Statutory Instrument 2005 No. (N.I.) - The Firearms (Amendment) (Northern Ireland) Order 2005

See also

• National Rifle Association, UK

The National Rifle Association of Great Britain (NRA) is the Governing Body of full bore rifle and pistol shooting in the United Kingdom. ...

References

External links

• London Metropolitan Police firearms page - more detail