§ Mr. Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action the Government are taking to reduce the availability and use of illegally held firearms; and if he will make a statement. [135808]
§ Mr. Charles Clarke[holding answer 30 October 2000]The Government are committed to supporting the police and Her Majesty's Customs in their work to combat illegal firearms. Measures that form part of our strategy to deal with illegal firearms include
Good security of legally held firearms to prevent them from being stolen;Stricter controls on de-activated weapons to prevent them being restored to working order. The Firearms Consultative Committee (FCC) has put forward a range of proposals for improving controls on deactivated firearms;Proactive intelligence gathering on sources of weapons used in crime through the Forensic Science Service (FSS), the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) and HM Customs and Excise;400WStronger intelligence sharing between the enforcement authorities and the reputable gun trade;Targeted policing measures against particular groups of criminals associated with armed violence, for example known armed robbers;Local and possibly national amnesties to reduce the number of illegal guns in the 'grey market' which might fall into criminal hands;The establishment of a national database of certificate holders and the possibility of recording the registration details of all legally-held firearms.The Government are also supporting international efforts to negotiate a United Nations protocol against the illicit manufacture of and trafficking in firearms.
While firearms crime is a serious problem, it remains a small proportion of overall crime figures. Action against illegal firearms should not and will not be taken in isolation from other criminal activities that may be linked with the illegal possession of firearms, for example the drugs trade.