Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of reviewing firearm licence procedures following the shooting in Plymouth on 12 August 2021.

This country has some of the toughest firearms controls in the world and our firearms law is kept under constant review to safeguard against abuse by criminals and to preserve public safety.

New statutory guidance on firearms licensing was published on 20 October and it sets a clear framework for the police to follow when considering applications for a firearm or shotgun certificate. For the first time, police will be legally required to have regard to the guidance and this will help improve standards and consistency across forces in the UK. The new guidance will come into force on 1 November.

We will keep the statutory guidance under review, especially as we learn more from the investigations and reviews following the shootings in Plymouth.