§ LORD HALEasked Her Majesty's Government:
To state the number of persons licensed to deal in firearms in (a) Great Britain and (b) Northern Ireland in the categories of licences now legally available; and to state by comparison the numbers of such licences respectively extant at the nearest convenient date for computation to the date of the last public appeal for the voluntary surrender of firearms.
§ LORD HARRIS OF GREENWICHThe registration of firearms dealers in Great Britain, and under the different legislation in Northern Ireland, is a matter for chief officers of police. I regret that the information requested could not be obtained without disproportionate expense to the police forces concerned.