Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish the performance data sent to her Department on firearms licensing by the firearms and explosives licensing working group of the National Police Chiefs’ Council since October 2022.

The issuing of firearms certificates and the efficiency of police forces is a matter for individual Chief Officers of Police and they are held to account by Police and Crime Commissioners.

However, the performance of forces is actively being monitored by the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for firearms licensing, Deputy Chief Constable David Gardner, and he is developing a new performance framework for firearms licensing teams, which it is intended will be published soon, to provide greater transparency on application turnaround times.