Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the firearms licensing departments that have taken a year or more to process applications for (a) grants and (b) renewals in each of the last five years.

The issuing of firearms certificates and the efficiency of police forces is a matter for individual Chief Constables, who are held to account by Police and Crime Commissioners.

However, the performance of forces in this space is being actively monitored by the National Police Chiefs’ Council’s lead for firearms licensing, Deputy Chief Constable David Gardner, and both he and his predecessor have been working actively with forces on performance related issues.