§ Mr. McNamaraTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence under what legal authority his Department may issue personal protection weapons in Northern Ireland; what safeguards prevent the misuse of such weapons; and how many such weapons have been reported (i) missing and (ii) stolen in the last five years. [81138]
§ Mr. Doug Henderson[holding answer 21 April 1999]: Members of the armed forces are entitled to bear firearms and ammunition, without a firearm certificate, under exemptions from firearms legislation. Should Service personnel wish to hold a firearm for a private purpose, however, they must obtain a firearms certificate.
The Army has in place a comprehensive range of procedures designed to prevent misuse of personal protection weapons (PPWs) issued by the Ministry of Defence in Northern Ireland.
722WThe stringent application and approval process takes into account the actual risk to a solder, his/her personal circumstances and general conduct, and advice from the Royal Ulster Constabulary. PPWs are issued only to soldiers who are considered likely to be at risk and there is no automatic entitlement for any category of soldier.
All soldiers with PPWs are given a full briefing concerning security. They also receive handling instruction and live firing practice before issue of the weapon, and at four monthly intervals thereafter.
Any changes to the circumstances of the PPW issue or to the conditions on which they are held must be recorded and approved by the individuals Commanding Officer. Commanding Officers also review bi-annually the issue of PPWs to soldiers under their command.
In total, over the last five years, only one Army issue PPW has been reported as missing and five as stolen.