HL Deb 30 November 2000 vol 619 cc180-2WA
Lord Tebbit

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What arrangements they propose to make to enable British and other competitors at the Commonwealth Games in 2002 to bring firearms into the United Kingdom and for British competitors to be able to practise for pistol shooting events without incurring foreign travel expenses. [HL4624]

Lord McIntosh of Haringey

The Secretary of State for the Home Department announced on 4 October 2000 that temporary authority would be granted for competitors to compete in shooting events at the 2002 Commonwealth Games. The Home Department and the national governing bodies of shooting, the National Rifle Association, and the National Small-Bore Rifle Association in association with Surrey police, have agreed an arrangement within the current firearm legislation which will enable British and foreign competitors to bring their firearms into the country for the duration of the Games.

The legislation will require that all visitors to this country will have to apply for a visitors firearms permit and those visitors must have a sponsor. The National Rifle Association will act as sponsors for all visitors firearms permits. This means each participating country's team manager will have to apply to the 2002 Commonwealth Games Office for an application form. Details will need to be provided on the numbers and types of all Section 1 and Section 5 firearms and shotguns to be brought into the country. Air rifles and air pistols do not need any form of visitors permits.

Applications for permits will be cleared within one month of receipt, accepting that Surrey police will have to deal with 42 countries. In this respect, the 2002 Commonwealth Games Office will expect applications to be returned to them no later than mid-May 2002. The Commonwealth Games Committee have already sent general guidelines on the use of firearms to all the participating countries.

All firearms will have to enter the country via London Heathrow airport and no exceptions to this rule will be allowed. Competitors will not be allowed to take firearms beyond Customs control at Heathrow, as they will be transported in special vehicles to the National Shooting Centre at Bisley. Once on the site at Bisley, these firearms will have to be transported from their armoury to the range by Commonwealth Games officials, and competitors will therefore only have access to them on the range for shooting or maintenance.

Her Majesty's Government will endeavour to treat all competitors equally whether from abroad or the UK in regard to the receipt of firearms into the country. However, the Home Office have confirmed that there will be no additional arrangements in place for them to compensate British competitors who incur travelling costs while practising abroad for shooting events.

However, in order to compliment the likely UK port funded World Class Performance Programme for UK Shooting (Olympic disciplines only), Sport England may continue with a specific Commonwealth Games preparation programme of Lottery funding to English shooters who are not covered by the UK Plan. It is possible therefore that if there are potential English medalists for the Commonwealth Games in the pistol shooting disciplines, they may be supported up to Manchester 2002 via some form of training and targeted competition programme overseas which are appropriate. This would be for Sport England to decide in conjunction with the English Target Shooting Federation.