This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Figures on firearm certificates
27/05/2004
The number of firearm and shot gun certificates on issue at the end of 2003 show small increases from the previous year according to new statistics published today.
The latest firearm certificates statistical bulletin shows that there were 26,505 firearm certificates on issue at the end of 2003, an increase of 293, or one per cent, on the previous year and the first increase since 1995. There were 52,421 shotgun certificates on issue at 31 December 2003, an increase of 643, or one per cent, on the previous year and the first increase since 1988.
Other main findings include:
• In 2003, there were 1,037 applications for new firearms certificates, a decrease of 16 per cent compared with 2002. Although the number of applications fell between 2002 and 2003, there were more applications than cancellations that year; therefore the number of certificates on issue at the end of the year increased.
• In 2003, 1,536 firearm certificates were renewed, a decrease of 78 per cent compared with 2002 when there were 7,005 renewals and 10 renewal applications were refused.
• More than a quarter of all firearms certificates on issue were in the Northern police force area, while Grampian and Strathclyde jointly accounted for around a third of the total.
• The 26,605 firearm certificates on issue at December 31 2003 covered the possession of 60,440 firearms. This represents a 0.3 per cent decrease on the number of firearms in 2002, and the average number of firearms possessed on each certificate remained at 2.3.
• The number of applications for a new shot gun certificate was 1,656 in 2003 - a decrease of 62, or 4 per cent, on 2002. Although the number of applications fell between 2002 and 2003, there were more applications than cancellations that year therefore the number of certificates on issue at the end of the year increased.
• There were 2,802 renewed shot gun certificates in 2003, a decrease of 81 per cent compared with 14,617 in 2002 and 10 renewal applications were also refused.
• Strathclyde, Grampian and Northern police force areas jointly constituted more than half of all shot gun certificates on issue at the end of 2003.
• The number of firearm and shot gun certificates on issue per head of population was highest in the Northern police force area and lowest in Strathclyde.
• The 52,421 shot gun certificates on issue covered the possession of 125,395 shot guns, a 2.3 per cent increase on 2002.
The figures in this bulletin cover the period in which changes to the firearms legislation were introduced to enhance public safety. As a result, the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 was implemented and thereafter the Firearms (Amendment)(No.2) Act 1997. Under the 1997 Act, all pistols - otherwise referred to as handguns - over .22 calibre were banned with effect from October 1, 1997. A hand-in scheme between July 1 and September 30, 1997 resulted in the surrender of 6,262 large calibre handguns in Scotland, while 1,751 small calibre handguns were also handed in voluntarily.
There was a second hand-in period between February 1 and 28, 1998 for the surrender of all small calibre handguns - up to and including .22 calibre - under the 1997 (No.2) Act, which came into effect from March 1, 1998. This resulted in 1,013 small calibre guns being handed in.
A number of types of handgun were exempted from the 1997 (No.2) Act including muzzle-loading guns, shot pistols, slaughtering instruments, firearms used for the humane killing of animals, trophies of war etc.
A further amnesty ran from March 31 to April 30, 2003 and saw the surrender of 3,392 firearms including 298 rifles, 986 shotguns, 4,776 rifles and 463 air pistols along with 143,916 rounds of ammunition.
Regulatory changes covering the length of time for which a firearm or shot gun certificate was valid came into force from January 1, 1995. These increased the period of certification from three to five years.
As this includes both applications for new certificates and renewals of existing certificates this effectively meant that no certificates required renewal in either 1998 or 1999. This had the knock-on effect that primarily only those certificates which were newly applied for in 1998 required renewal in 2003. This meant that the number of renewals for firearm and shotgun certificates were very low for 2003, as were the number of cancellations.
National statistics are produced to high professional standards set out in the National Statistics Code of Practice. They undergo regular quality assurance reviews to ensure that they meet customer needs. They are produced free from any political interference.