Crossbows (Restrictions) (Hansard, 11 June 1986)

§ Mr. Don Dixon (Jarrow)

I beg to move, That leave be given to bring in a Bill to restrict the sale of crossbows and make their sale to minors a punishable offence. I appreciate that this issue has been raised many times by hon. Members on both sides of the House. Indeed, I pay tribute to the hon. Member for Plymouth, Drake (Miss Fookes), who has been foremost in the fight to have something done about these weapons.

The matter was drawn vividly to my attention last August when a constituent, Mr. Richard Docherty, brought to my office in Jarrow a crossbow which had been bought in a hobby shop in South Shields by his 15-year-old brother, Adrian. On seeing it, Mr. Docherty immediately took the weapon from his brother and tried it out in the garden. From 15 yards the steel arrow penetrated a piece of wood to the depth of 1 in, which is easily enough to kill a person at that range.

The weapon was manufactured by Barnett International of Wolverhampton, and it claimed on the package to be the most powerful crossbow manufactured in the world. This lethal weapon — I cannot describe it otherwise—had been sold in a hobby shop to a 15-yearold boy.

On 5 September 1985 I wrote to the Home Secretary, drawing his attention to this alarming and dangerous position which, in my opinion, could lead to fatal accidents, and urging him to take immediate action. On 30 September I received a reply from the Minister of State, who pointed out that the Prevention of Crime Act 1955 makes it an offence to possess any offensive weapon, including a bow or crossbow, without lawful authority or reasonable excuse. He went on to say: Our view, which is shared by the Association of Chief Police Officers, is that bows and arrows do not present the same danger to the public as firearms, and that given the extensive restrictions that already are in use, we would not be justified in imposing on the police the substantial extra work load of further controls such as a licensing system would entail. However, at the end of the letter the Minister said: This is an important matter which we shall keep under review, in consultation with the Association of Chief Police Officers. An article appeared in the Sunday Sun which is a newspaper covering the northern region, spearheading a campaign to have something done about the sale and use of crossbows. It was a constructive article written by the news editor Alistair Baker. The so-called independent review funded by Barnett International, the main manufacturer of crossbows, says: Calls for crossbow legislation have been made at frequent intervals. Many originate with newspapers and are based on highly emotional and often irrational statements which have little or no basis in fact. Others originate from Members of Parliament. That is an insult to every hon. Member who has had representations from constituents.

Since the article in the Sunday Sun appeared I have had letters from many parts of the country citing incidents that have occurred. One of the letters said: Two policemen were attacked as they were getting out of the patrol car at Bracknell police station in Berks. One of the two bolts they dodged was fired with such force that it penetrated the station's concrete wall. Another incident reported to me by letter was described as follows: 329 A bolt was fired at an airliner. A Dan Air plane with 44 passengers was about 100 ft off the ground. The bolt penetrated a wing and ripped part of the fuselage. Those are some of the incidents that have been reported to me and no doubt other hon. Members have received similar reports from their constituents.

On 20 February during Question Time I asked the Home Secretary about these dangerous weapons. He said: We are considering the matter carefully and urgently to see whether anything sensible can be done."—[Official Report, 20 February 1986; Vol. 92, c. 467.] Early-day motion 638, tabled in March by the hon. Member for Drake drew the attention of the House to these dangerous weapons, and was signed by right hon. and hon. Members in all parts of the House.

I consulted my right hon. Friend the Member for Manchester, Gorton (Mr. Kaufman), our home affairs spokesman, and gave him copies of my correspondence and copies of the minutes of the Northumbria police authority which had debated this problem after hearing about the incidents in our area. My right hon. Friend wrote to the Home Secretary and in the reply that he received on 16 April the Home Secretary said: Particular concern has been expressed recently about the mis-use of crossbows, and I accept that we should look at it again to see if anything further can sensibly be done to try and prevent these weapons falling into the wrong hands. On 15 April the RSPCA wrote to the Home Office giving all the information it had on crossbow injuries to animals. It said that during the last five years over 100 cases of injuries and deaths were reported to animals and birds and that the numbers were increasing. On 6 May The Mirror had a full page article headed, "Menace of Weekend Rambos." In one part of the article the author talked about "death by mail order". The article said: Already crossbows are taking a terrible toll. They can kill a man at 100 yards and are being used by thugs to inflict shocking injury and death on people, domestic animals and wildlife. Police admit that under the present law they are powerless to curb private combat training and the spread of legally-held weapons. I stress the phrase, "legally held weapons."

330 I am sure that other hon. Members have also had letters about the terrible incidents that are happening week after week. If something is not done quickly there will be not just one but many deaths. My Bill asks the Government to do something urgently. First, it asks that the use of crossbows should be licensed under the Use of Firearms Act 1968. Secondly, it would amend section 11(1) (b) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, to make it an offence to kill any animal with a crossbow and not just wild animals and birds. Thirdly, it would prohibit all mail order sales. Fourthly, it would prohibit sales to all but those over 17.

Something must be done immediately, because if the situation is allowed to go unchecked there will be serious consequences. I hope that the House will accept the Bill and give it a Second Reading.