Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of proposed shotgun licensing reforms on rural employment.

The Government response to the 2023 firearms licensing consultation, published on 13 February this year, included a commitment to having a public consultation on strengthening the licensing controls on shotguns to bring them more into line with the controls on other firearms in the interests of public safety. We intend to publish this consultation shortly.

We will carefully consider all of the views put forward during the consultation once it is completed, including from those who live and work in rural communities, before taking any decision on whether and what changes may be necessary in the interests of public safety. We will also provide an assessment of the impact of any changes that we bring forward after the consultation, including to the business community in rural areas.