§ Mr. Robert McCartneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many and what percentage of firearms licences are issued on personal protection grounds; and how many are issued for target shooting. [4456]
§ Sir John WheelerThe Chief Constable has advised me that on 31 October 1996 there were 134,103 registered firearms in Northern Ireland. Of these, 10,681, or 8 per cent., were authorised as personal protection weapons, 1,805, or 1.3 per cent., for target shooting and 260, or 0.2 per cent., were for both purposes.