Source · Select Committees · Scottish Affairs Committee
Recommendation 12
12
Acknowledged
Each firearms licence application and renewal is processed by the police force in the applicant’s...
Conclusion
Each firearms licence application and renewal is processed by the police force in the applicant’s local area.33 Individuals applying for, and renewing, firearms licences must demonstrate that they are not a “danger to public safety or the peace”34, and that “they require their firearm on a regular, legitimate basis for work, sport or leisure”.35 Individuals must provide character references from two referees36, who must be “of good character”.37 Checks carried out on individuals include background checks on individuals’ financial data and open social media posts38, and home visits by police to ensure that individuals have appropriate secure storage for firearms.39 Other factors considered by police forces include “a request from a partner or family member that the applicant should not hold a certificate”40 and individuals’ criminal records.41 Individuals who have criminal records can apply for firearms licences. Individuals who have received custodial sentences of between three months and three years when convicted may apply for licences five years after release. Individuals who have received a custodial sentence of three years or more are prohibited for life–but the prohibition may be lifted on application to the Crown Court.42 Scotland’s system for firearms licensing
Government Response Summary
The UK Government acknowledges the committee's recommendations and mentions they have started a consultation on these along with other reports, indicating that further consultation will occur if new legislation is needed.
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
The UK Government has looked at the recommendations from the Committee alongside Prevention of Future Deaths reports issued by the Senior Coroner for Plymouth, Torbay and South Devon on 8 March 2023, following the inquest into the deaths of those shot and killed by Jake Davison in Keyham, Plymouth, on 12 August 2021 and the report by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) following its investigation into Devon and Cornwall Police’s decision-making in relation to the possession of a shotgun and shotgun certificate by Jake Davison, published on 20 February 2023. You will have seen today that we started a consultation for eight weeks on the recommendations made to the Government in your report and those made by the Senior Coroner for Plymouth, Torbay and South Devon and the IOPC. The consultation is to invite responses to the recommendations that have been made and on which we are consulting. However, if we decide that new legislation is necessary in response to any of the recommendations, we will bring forward a further consultation on the specific Government proposals on legislation, accompanied by assessments of the impact of those changes on all those potentially affected.