Conor O'Gorman Posted August 31, 2022 Report Share Posted August 31, 2022 BASC is calling for a major overhaul of the firearms licensing service following its recent investigation into the state of firearms licensing in England and Wales. Through a series of Freedom of Information requests, BASC's investigation found significant inconsistencies in the service provided by the 42 separate firearms licensing departments in England and Wales. BASC is recommending a major overhaul of the licensing service through either the unification of licensing, as has been seen in Scotland, or the creation of an independent regulator to ensure failing forces are held to account. More information: https://basc.org.uk/firearms-licensing-inconsistencies-are-symptomatic-of-wider-police-failures/ Click link below to download BASC's report: https://basc.org.uk/download/338307/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oowee Posted August 31, 2022 Report Share Posted August 31, 2022 Excellent. 👍 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grahamch Posted August 31, 2022 Report Share Posted August 31, 2022 Am not sure what this will achieve. Who are the recommendations addressed to and how can we ensure they are acted on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walker570 Posted August 31, 2022 Report Share Posted August 31, 2022 Something we all knew about the present police organisation. They spend more time 'taking the knee' than doing the job they are paid for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted August 31, 2022 Report Share Posted August 31, 2022 Hopefully some of the fairly recent FLO fails will help to move such an action along. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted August 31, 2022 Report Share Posted August 31, 2022 We can only hope, but please don't hold your breath! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old farrier Posted August 31, 2022 Report Share Posted August 31, 2022 There just as likely to shut down the whole system while they investigate it 🙄 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westley Posted August 31, 2022 Report Share Posted August 31, 2022 Remember, not ALL forces are poor. My dealings with Merseyside Firearms Department have been excellent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted August 31, 2022 Report Share Posted August 31, 2022 Not that I’m expecting a response, but a cessation of processing grants is also an inconsistency given that some authorities are continuing to process such. Cumbria have just announced they will no longer process grants for the immediate future; why is it apparently ok for a public service provider to withdraw that service? Is it even legal? Why aren’t you as the supposed ‘voice of shooting’ doing something about it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted September 1, 2022 Report Share Posted September 1, 2022 Quote Remember, not ALL forces are poor. My dealings with Merseyside Firearms Department have been excellent. I fall under Greater Manchester Firearms and have to agree. They have always been approachable, helpful and I have never been without a valid cert. They are not totally up to date, but issued a Section 7, when my current cert was not ready. They were also understanding when my GP's Practice dragged their feet providing medical history. A few years ago, a very good friend was going through a domestic and rather than take his guns, they let his father hold his licence and let me hold the guns. We both gave our word that he would not be allowed access to either without their approval. It worked out well and save a lot of grief. I wonder if all Forces would have been so sensible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clangerman Posted September 1, 2022 Report Share Posted September 1, 2022 so after the spectacular lead ban call disaster basc are going to lecture the police on failure only one way that one will go punish shooters! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conor O'Gorman Posted September 1, 2022 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2022 23 hours ago, Scully said: Not that I’m expecting a response, but a cessation of processing grants is also an inconsistency given that some authorities are continuing to process such. Cumbria have just announced they will no longer process grants for the immediate future; why is it apparently ok for a public service provider to withdraw that service? Is it even legal? Why aren’t you as the supposed ‘voice of shooting’ doing something about it? There are issues with various forces across England and Wales and we are tackling these on an ongoing basis. From the BASC report: There are 13 forces which, despite Covid, managed to turn around renewals and grants in between 38.5 and 70 days, the average being 54 days. These forces were Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire (the three forces combine in a consortium), Cleveland, Cheshire, Essex, Gloucestershire, Gwent, Kent, Lincolnshire, Merseyside, Thames Valley Police (TVP) and Warwickshire. These 13 forces also managed to process applications and renewals from between 15.8% and 25.1% of their certificate holders, the average being circa 20%. This is the percentage one would expect to be processed given a five-year certificate. Worryingly, several forces with severe backlogs processed well below this figure, raising the question as to what plans are in place to eliminate that backlog. It is difficult to see how this will be achieved without such remedial action. Examples include Cumbria, Dorset and Northumbria who processed less than 11% of their applications and renewals. Click link below to download BASC's report: https://basc.org.uk/download/338307/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted September 1, 2022 Report Share Posted September 1, 2022 Thanks, but you haven’t told me anything relevant that isn’t already in the statement issued by Cumbria licensing authority. I’m not really interested in the reasons given, I asked why it is apparently ok for a public service provider to withdraw that service, if what they were doing was legal and what you were doing about it. Nevermind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phaedra1106 Posted September 3, 2022 Report Share Posted September 3, 2022 (edited) I read the Basc report. Durham's figures are way off. From what I've been told there are 2 girls and a manager in the office, at least one of them only works 2 days a week. There's one full time FEO and another who is retiring. Renewals are listed at 88 days, my club members are reporting times of 6 to 9 months, my own submitted at the end of 2020 took 7 months. Edited September 4, 2022 by phaedra1106 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tweedledee Posted September 4, 2022 Report Share Posted September 4, 2022 N Ireland psni are a complete joke atm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speycaster Posted September 4, 2022 Report Share Posted September 4, 2022 On 31/08/2022 at 21:19, Scully said: Not that I’m expecting a response, but a cessation of processing grants is also an inconsistency given that some authorities are continuing to process such. Cumbria have just announced they will no longer process grants for the immediate future; why is it apparently ok for a public service provider to withdraw that service? Is it even legal? Why aren’t you as the supposed ‘voice of shooting’ doing something about it? One of my coaches (who lives in North Lanarkshire) was told at the start of the year that his force was not going to process grants until further notice (ultimately not till about July) as due to staffing they had to prioritise renewals. I guess they can justify it as if they don't have the man power to adequately process the renewals then folk will be at risk of losing their guns? Which I guess gets ranked worse? I noticed an article (can't remember where though) that Devon & Cornwall Police reportedly told an applicant that their grant would take 2.5 YEARS! Happy to say that Edinburgh Police are looking at just under 2 months for my SGC grant - with 2 weeks waiting to get assigned the FLO, 3 weeks of faffing around to get onto a safe shooting course to satisfy him for gun safety, and then a quoted "up to" 3 weeks for the paperwork to be processed... The delay with the paperwork is apparently the office people in Glenrothes HQ are still mostly working from home, and certificate printing is one of the things that must be done in office... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bostonmick Posted September 4, 2022 Report Share Posted September 4, 2022 On 31/08/2022 at 21:19, Scully said: Why aren’t you as the supposed ‘voice of shooting’ doing something about it? does this surprise you.they have done nothing for years now except enjoy the ride on the gravy train.we got to this state because they would not use the members cash to take up legal challenges but preferred to let it slide and enjoy a cushy life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted September 4, 2022 Report Share Posted September 4, 2022 1 hour ago, bostonmick said: does this surprise you.they have done nothing for years now except enjoy the ride on the gravy train.we got to this state because they would not use the members cash to take up legal challenges but preferred to let it slide and enjoy a cushy life. That's the reason I've let mine lapse - in addition to me hardly ever going out now as I've overshot my rabbit perms. My reasoning to join initially was mostly because of the legal cover. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted September 8, 2022 Report Share Posted September 8, 2022 On 04/09/2022 at 18:17, bostonmick said: does this surprise you.they have done nothing for years now except enjoy the ride on the gravy train.we got to this state because they would not use the members cash to take up legal challenges but preferred to let it slide and enjoy a cushy life. No, not at all. The more I hear BASC representatives speak, the more they sound like politicians. I’d love to support them, but have given up on all of them completely. The two kids in the village I have introduced to shooting are insured through Gunplan, the only drawback is Cumbria have stopped issuing grants! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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