Thanks, Fosbery, I forgot about the black powder guns!
I must also add that the UK is never going to be an 'armed polite society' even if every citizen has a rifle or a shotgun.
That's because you can't use a firearm as a defensive weapon (in the eyes of the law). Your application for the firearm has its roots in hunting, sport or for collecting. These are the main reasons why Joe Public gets a firearms certificate. Mention any kind of defense or protection, and your chances of being granted a firearms certificate are reduced GREATLY.
However, I must say that the guy who came to interview me was a very reasonable fellow (within the limits the law imposes on him and on me). He came round here and asked me why I needed the guns listed on my certificate. I told him that I was asking for a 9mm rifle because he wouldn't give me a 9mm pistol...the necessity for the pistol being that I was interested in gunshot wounds
Now they've got me on computer already because I was a witness in a drive-by in 2004 and I protected some forensic evidence in that case. I told him I want to shoot some service ammo and I had some tests in the pipeline. He must have checked my background very carefully because a few days after the interview he asked for copies of my South African firearms licenses. I gave him those and he reported that to his seniors. They granted me the certificate without any delay after that. I waited two weeks only, from the time of posting the application.
There is another South African at the rifle club who has been waiting several months for his certificate. I guess it depends on the firearms authority involved (he is under a different firearms team) and also your job/references. A radiographer who works around the elderly and around children usually has a squeaky clean history. We aren't known for shooting up the place
Mind you, a health worker isn't a guaranteed angel...look how many people Dr Shipman killed (with drugs). He killed more than Cho, Hamilton, and Ryan put together. IIRC he killed about 213.