Andy-YPC
02-09-2007, 07:52
ORIGINALLY POSTED BY STEVE BULL
This is from Hansard - reports from Parliament
18 June 2007
Firearms: Crime
Dr. Tony Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many incidents involving the use of ball-bearing guns have been reported in the last five years; and what action he intends to take to tackle the misuse of such guns. [142508]
Mr. Coaker: Available figures relate to the use of BB guns. A BB gun is a low powered weapon which fires pellets (rather than ball bearings) at a low velocity.
Statistics on the number of offences involving BB guns have only been collected separately since April 2004.
There were 2,864 and 2,753 BB gun offences during 2004-05 and 2005-06 respectively.
The Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 will double the maximum custodial sentence for possessing an imitation firearm in a public place without reasonable excuse to one year. It will also make it illegal to sell any imitation firearm to a person under 18 and will ban the manufacture, import and sale of realistic imitation firearms. We intend to commence these provisions with effect from 1 October.
Here is another intresting piece from the "Gun Control Network"
The Violent Crime Reduction Bill was initially published on 8 June and had its second reading on 20 June 2005. As it enters the Committee stage today, an orchestrated campaign to water it down is underway. Paintballers and airsoft gunners who feel their sports are threatened are urging MPs to throw out the section of the bill that deals with imitation guns.
Section 30 of the Bill introduces the term 'a realistic imitation firearm' which it goes on to define as 'an imitation firearm whose appearance is so realistic as to make it indistinguishable, for all practical purposes, from a firearm of an existing make or model ...'. An imitation will not be regarded as 'distinguishable' if it could be distinguished from the real thing only by an expert, or on close examination or as a result of attempting to load or to fire it.
So, anything that looks like a real firearm will no longer be legally sold, imported or manufactured. It does not matter whether the gun fires a pellet, a capsule of paint, a ball bearing or nothing at all. If a court finds that a BB gun or air pistol looks like a realistic firearm then it may not be manufactured, bought or sold.
There will of course still be look-alikes in cupboards and under beds all around the country, but in due course even they will gradually disappear - perhaps an opportunity to hand them in to the police will assist the process.
The aim and benefit of this excellent piece of legislation is to stop children and young people treating guns as toys, learning about the power the gun gives them and graduating to more dangerous weapons.
As Gill Marshall-Andrews Chair of the Gun Control Network says ' No-one needs a realistic imitation gun - except perhaps a re-enactment society. Paintball and airsoft guns do not have to look like the real thing. A green plastic BB gun would not be affected by the proposed legislation. If it's not lethal and doesn't look like a real firearm then there's no problem'.
The Gun Control Network welcomes the government's commitment to dealing with the recent sharp rise (66%) in gun crime involving imitation guns. We will be safer, and importantly we will feel safer, if we can stop the spread of these unnecessary weapons.
Some relevent points in both articles
Steve
__________________
This is from Hansard - reports from Parliament
18 June 2007
Firearms: Crime
Dr. Tony Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many incidents involving the use of ball-bearing guns have been reported in the last five years; and what action he intends to take to tackle the misuse of such guns. [142508]
Mr. Coaker: Available figures relate to the use of BB guns. A BB gun is a low powered weapon which fires pellets (rather than ball bearings) at a low velocity.
Statistics on the number of offences involving BB guns have only been collected separately since April 2004.
There were 2,864 and 2,753 BB gun offences during 2004-05 and 2005-06 respectively.
The Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 will double the maximum custodial sentence for possessing an imitation firearm in a public place without reasonable excuse to one year. It will also make it illegal to sell any imitation firearm to a person under 18 and will ban the manufacture, import and sale of realistic imitation firearms. We intend to commence these provisions with effect from 1 October.
Here is another intresting piece from the "Gun Control Network"
The Violent Crime Reduction Bill was initially published on 8 June and had its second reading on 20 June 2005. As it enters the Committee stage today, an orchestrated campaign to water it down is underway. Paintballers and airsoft gunners who feel their sports are threatened are urging MPs to throw out the section of the bill that deals with imitation guns.
Section 30 of the Bill introduces the term 'a realistic imitation firearm' which it goes on to define as 'an imitation firearm whose appearance is so realistic as to make it indistinguishable, for all practical purposes, from a firearm of an existing make or model ...'. An imitation will not be regarded as 'distinguishable' if it could be distinguished from the real thing only by an expert, or on close examination or as a result of attempting to load or to fire it.
So, anything that looks like a real firearm will no longer be legally sold, imported or manufactured. It does not matter whether the gun fires a pellet, a capsule of paint, a ball bearing or nothing at all. If a court finds that a BB gun or air pistol looks like a realistic firearm then it may not be manufactured, bought or sold.
There will of course still be look-alikes in cupboards and under beds all around the country, but in due course even they will gradually disappear - perhaps an opportunity to hand them in to the police will assist the process.
The aim and benefit of this excellent piece of legislation is to stop children and young people treating guns as toys, learning about the power the gun gives them and graduating to more dangerous weapons.
As Gill Marshall-Andrews Chair of the Gun Control Network says ' No-one needs a realistic imitation gun - except perhaps a re-enactment society. Paintball and airsoft guns do not have to look like the real thing. A green plastic BB gun would not be affected by the proposed legislation. If it's not lethal and doesn't look like a real firearm then there's no problem'.
The Gun Control Network welcomes the government's commitment to dealing with the recent sharp rise (66%) in gun crime involving imitation guns. We will be safer, and importantly we will feel safer, if we can stop the spread of these unnecessary weapons.
Some relevent points in both articles
Steve
__________________