Gun Crime

Unlike in America, there is little debate between pro-gun control and pro-gun ownership lobbies in the UK. There is general public consensus against ownership of handguns, which is enforced under strict legislation. Guns for sport are more readily accepted, but are controlled by a strict licensing regime.

Background

Despite these strong sentiments, the UK has not averted gun crime by any means.

Particularly prominent within public memory is the Dunblane massacre. In 1996 a disturbed former boy-scout leader named Thomas Hamilton shot dead sixteen young children and their teacher at Dunblane Primary School before turning the gun on himself. This event was particularly startling because it was the second time in a decade that unarmed civilians had been slaughtered by a legally licensed gun owner.

The combined impact and subsequent public outcry motivated the Conservative government at the time to amend the existing legislation on gun ownership. The Firearms Amendment of 1997 completely banned handguns for private ownership.

Controversies

Despite the ban, research carried out following the implementation of the act saw a 40 per cent increase in the number of gun crime incidents in the UK.

While the number of homicides from gun crime has largely remained static over the past decade, 2007 has proved a decisive year for this issue. There has been a wave of gang related incidents committed by teenagers against other teenagers, with some high profile cases ending in fatalities. London, Manchester and Nottingham have been most notably affected.

In September these attacks culminated in the murder of an 11-year-old boy in Liverpool, hit whilst playing football outside his local pub. At the present time, the case of Rhys Jones remains open although numerous adolescents have been arrested and questioned.

Gordon Brown has come under constant pressure to resolve the problems driving these murders. Commentators have highlighted a range of social problems which might be responsible including: inner city poverty; to family breakdown; and the absence of positive black role models in the UK.

The government has also faced questions over the apparent availability of guns, which has remained strong despite the handgun ban. Some commentators have also suggested the government's legislation, specifically punishments for carrying a gun, are exacerbating gun crime among the young. Anecdotal evidence suggests older gang members are handing their weapons to younger 'foot soldiers' in order to escape harsh automatic penalties.

Statistics

According to some research the number of people injured since 1998 - after the Firearms Act - in England and Wales increased massively by 110 per cent.

The number of homicides from gun shots over the last decade has remained static with between 46 - 97 reported cases a year.

Quotes

"One of the striking things is the difference between the attitude and the success in life of black girls from exactly the same backgrounds compared to black boys. Black boys go backwards when they get to secondary school. It's a cultural problem. It's the absence of fathers who are actively involved in parenting. And as we know - lads need dads. Of course they need their mums as well, but there is a particular point in teenagers' development, of young men, where fathers are very important and they are more likely to be absent in the case of the Afro-Caribbean".

Justice secretary Jack Straw on the absence of black role models, 2007.

"The prime minister should instruct Jack Straw and his Home Secretary to instead formulate the robust response this country demands after the murder of Rhys Jones. We have a Government that for 10 years has refused to learn from the successes of some American cities, including New York. Even now it would seem that this government is in denial and prefers to use its time spinning statistics to mask its failure."

Conservative leader David Cameron on the murder of Rhys Jones, 2007.