Firearms: Licensing

(asked on 11th May 2020) - View Source

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the number of people that have been prosecuted for making a false declaration in respect of their medical condition on applications for shotgun and firearm certificates in each of the last five years.


Answered by
Kit Malthouse Portrait
Kit Malthouse
This question was answered on 19th May 2020

Firearms licensing is an operational matter for police forces. The police are not required to provide data to the Home Office about how the medical checks are conducted or the response from GPs. The police carry out a number of checks to ensure that those in possession of firearms do not pose a danger to public safety, including in relation to medical suitability. As part of this process, GPs are asked to provide information about whether the applicant has suffered from a number of relevant medical conditions.

The Government has consulted on the introduction of new statutory firearms guidance to police, which includes proposals for revised medical arrangements to ensure that police have the medical information they require before the grant of a certificate. The consultation closed on 17 September and the Government will publish its response and the statutory guidance in due course.

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