§ Lord Marlesfordasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many handguns have been handed in to each police force in the United Kingdom under the provisions of the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 and the Firearms (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1997 respectively; and [HL2574]
What arrangements were made by each police force in the United Kingdom to destroy handguns handed in under the provisions of the Firearms (Amendment) Acts 1997; and [HL2575]
What arrangements they have made to monitor and audit the destruction of weapons handed in under the provisions of the Firearms (Amendment) Acts 1997; and whether they are satisfied that all the weapons handed in have been destroyed in such a manner as to make it impossible for them to be reactivated. [HL2576]
§ Lord Williams of MostynThe prohibition of large-calibre handguns under the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 came into effect on 1 July 1997 and owners of such handguns were required to dispose of them lawfully by 30 September 1997. By the end of that period, 116,644 large-calibre handguns had been surrendered to the police. In addition, although at that time yet to be prohibited, 26,371 small-calibre pistols were surrendered voluntarily by their owners to the police under the terms of the Government'sex gratia payment scheme. A further 19,183 small-calibre pistols were surrendered to the police between 1 and 28 February 1998 following the implementation of the Firearms (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 199'7, which extended the original prohibition to small-calibre pistols. As a result, the total number of handguns surrendered to the police in England, Wales and Scotland was 162,198. The table below shows the number of handguns surrendered by police force area.
Arrangements for the destruction of weapons handed in to the police under the provisions of the two Acts were a matter for chief officers of police, taking account of operational considerations and local circumstances The Government are satisfied that the police took the necessary action to ensure that surrendered firearms were destroyed safely and securely by smelting. crushing, chopping up or other similar methods. As part 107WA of its detailed scrutiny of the receipt and disposal of surrendered handguns, the National Audit Office was satisfied with the arrangements made by the police. A small number of surrendered weapons have been
108WA
Handguns Surrendered under the Firearms Acts 1997 1997 Act 1997 (No. 2) Act Constabulary/Police Large Calibre Small Calibre (ex gratia) Total Small Calibre Combined Total England & Wales Avon & Somerset 3,227 566 3,793 702 4,495 Bedfordshire 992 232 1,224 150 1,374 City of London 73 30 103 30 133 Cambridgeshire 1,176 365 1,541 253 1,794 Cheshire 2,250 361 2,611 367 2,978 Cleveland 700 242 942 123 1,065 Cumbria 863 150 1,013 274 1,287 Derbyshire 1,791 476 2,267 287 2,554 Devon & Cornwall 3,625 573 4,198 892 5,090 Dorset 2,207 545 2,752 348 3,100 Durham 1,020 313 1,333 108 1,441 Dyfed Powys 1,320 234 1,554 239 1,793 Essex 4,840 1,268 6,108 658 6,766 Gloucestershire 1,102 280 1,382 318 1,700 Gtr Manchester 3,834 1,093 4,927 595 5,522 Gwent 1,112 289 1,401 163 1,564 Hampshire 3,757 766 4,523 649 5,172 Hertfordshire 1,998 435 2,433 241 2,674 Humberside 1,169 352 1,521 216 1,737 Kent 3,745 822 4,567 603 5,170 Lancashire 2,280 671 2,951 340 3,291 Leicestershire 2,515 377 2,892 202 3,094 Lincolnshire 1,308 338 1,646 162 1,808 Merseyside 2,907 650 3,557 408 3,965 Met Area 1 699 177 876 89 965 Met Area 2 2,852 629 3,481 499 3,980 Met Area 3 3,264 749 4,013 473 4,486 Met Area 4 4,176 868 5,044 820 5,864 Met Area 5 3,324 573 3,897 631 4,528 Norfolk 2,224 554 2,778 350 3,128 Northamptonshire 1,048 333 1,381 226 1,607 Northumbria 1,823 459 2,282 279 2,561 North Wales 1,267 287 1,554 263 1,817 North Yorkshire 3,105 794 3,899 126 4,025 Nottinghamshire 3,571 555 4,126 628 4,754 South Wales 2,862 784 3,646 337 3,983 South Yorkshire 2,125 663 2,788 219 3,007 Staffordshire 2,942 641 3,583 364 3,947 Suffolk 1,598 527 2,125 216 2,341 Surrey 3,114 668 3,782 680 4,462 Sussex 3,286 502 3,788 530 4,318 Thames Valley 3,806 807 4,613 1,013 5,626 Warwickshire 832 215 1,047 176 1,223 West Mercia 2,588 608 3,196 491 3,687 West Midlands 5,011 825 5,836 640 6,476 West Yorkshire 3,702 654 4,356 588 4,944 Wiltshire 1,352 320 1,672 204 1,876 Sub Total for E & W 110,382 24,620 135,002 18,170 153,172 Scotland Central Scotland 289 103 392 17 409 Dumfries & Galloway 236 83 319 33 352 Fife 293 76 369 61 430 Grampian 657 149 806 85 891 Lothian & Borders 1,253 245 1,498 194 1,692 Northern 958 307 1,265 173 1,438 Strathclyde 1,922 633 2,555 378 2,933 Tayside 654 155 809 72 881 Sub Total for Scotland 6,262 1,751 8,013 1,013 9,026 Overall Total for E, W & S 116,644 26,371 143,015 19,183 162,198 retained by the police for training purposes or given to museums. The police continue to store a number of weapons pending resolution of the relevant compensation claims.