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Pistol shooters reprieve 'too little too late'
28 January 2008 06:45
By AURA SABADUS
Pistol shooters are set to win a reprieve from strict firearms laws which mean they have to go abroad to practise.
The Ministry of Defence has agreed in principle to allow selected shooters to use its ranges and store their guns on its properties.
But last night a top Norfolk pistol shooter criticised the government for a "half-hearted" move which, he claimed, would still not increase the chances of British contestants in international competitions.
Under firearms legislation which banned the ownership of handguns in England, Scotland and Wales in the aftermath of the Dunblane school shooting in 1996 when 16 pupils and a teacher died, British shooters vying for Olympic or Commonwealth medals are not allowed to train on home soil and have to spend thousands of pounds to practise in Zurich, Switzerland.
The ban is already costing British shooters dear - none has qualified for this year's Olympic Games in Beijing.
Recognising the need for more practise, the MoD has now agreed in principle to allow a select squad of 50 pistol shooters to train in the UK and representatives from the sports' governing body - British Shooting - are to meet officials from the Home Office next month to discuss the details.
But Dereham-based Mick Gault, who holds the record for the most Commonwealth medals, said the announcement was "a very small step in the right direction".
"The sport has been dying out gradually as a result of the ban," said the 53-year-old sportsman, who has 15 Commonwealth medals and was named EDP Sportsman of the Year in 2007. "It's only one or two die-hards like me who have been keeping it alive. I normally travel to Switzerland in the run-up to the Commonwealth games to train and that's a very costly business.
"The reprieve is a half-hearted measure and will only affect 50 people - which is a relatively small number. I suppose the training will take place on specially organised MoD ranges."
A Home Office spokesman said: "We are in talks with the Department for Culture, Media and Sports to allow a small squad of pistol shooters to practise on MoD facilities. We're currently working on the details on how best to implement this reprieve."
Mr Gault said the reprieve should be expanded to allow more sportsmen and women to train in the UK as well as store their guns on their properties, if better results were to be expected.
British Shooting estimates that each elite shooter spends about £6,000 a year on travel and accommodation and many young people cannot afford it.
Under the Firearms Amendments Act, exemptions are granted ordinarily to members of the Armed Forces and private security officials such as bodyguards.
John Leighton-Dyson, performance director at British Shooting, said: "To be an Olympic athlete you need to do a minimum of 10,000 hours of shooting. Our shooters are getting a few hundred hours a year, a fraction of what is required. Every month that passes is wasted hours."
Jacqui Smith, the home secretary, is said to be supportive of the request for domestic training but is unlikely to allow shooters to keep guns at home.
In the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games competitors were granted a special dispensation. They were escorted from Heathrow under armed guard to the shooting centre at Bisley. Spectators watched the events behind screens and during training the shooters were guarded by armed officers.
http://new.edp24.co.uk/content/news...gory=news&itemid=NOED27 Jan 2008 18:19:16:530
28 January 2008 06:45
By AURA SABADUS
Pistol shooters are set to win a reprieve from strict firearms laws which mean they have to go abroad to practise.
The Ministry of Defence has agreed in principle to allow selected shooters to use its ranges and store their guns on its properties.
But last night a top Norfolk pistol shooter criticised the government for a "half-hearted" move which, he claimed, would still not increase the chances of British contestants in international competitions.
Under firearms legislation which banned the ownership of handguns in England, Scotland and Wales in the aftermath of the Dunblane school shooting in 1996 when 16 pupils and a teacher died, British shooters vying for Olympic or Commonwealth medals are not allowed to train on home soil and have to spend thousands of pounds to practise in Zurich, Switzerland.
The ban is already costing British shooters dear - none has qualified for this year's Olympic Games in Beijing.
Recognising the need for more practise, the MoD has now agreed in principle to allow a select squad of 50 pistol shooters to train in the UK and representatives from the sports' governing body - British Shooting - are to meet officials from the Home Office next month to discuss the details.
But Dereham-based Mick Gault, who holds the record for the most Commonwealth medals, said the announcement was "a very small step in the right direction".
"The sport has been dying out gradually as a result of the ban," said the 53-year-old sportsman, who has 15 Commonwealth medals and was named EDP Sportsman of the Year in 2007. "It's only one or two die-hards like me who have been keeping it alive. I normally travel to Switzerland in the run-up to the Commonwealth games to train and that's a very costly business.
"The reprieve is a half-hearted measure and will only affect 50 people - which is a relatively small number. I suppose the training will take place on specially organised MoD ranges."
A Home Office spokesman said: "We are in talks with the Department for Culture, Media and Sports to allow a small squad of pistol shooters to practise on MoD facilities. We're currently working on the details on how best to implement this reprieve."
Mr Gault said the reprieve should be expanded to allow more sportsmen and women to train in the UK as well as store their guns on their properties, if better results were to be expected.
British Shooting estimates that each elite shooter spends about £6,000 a year on travel and accommodation and many young people cannot afford it.
Under the Firearms Amendments Act, exemptions are granted ordinarily to members of the Armed Forces and private security officials such as bodyguards.
John Leighton-Dyson, performance director at British Shooting, said: "To be an Olympic athlete you need to do a minimum of 10,000 hours of shooting. Our shooters are getting a few hundred hours a year, a fraction of what is required. Every month that passes is wasted hours."
Jacqui Smith, the home secretary, is said to be supportive of the request for domestic training but is unlikely to allow shooters to keep guns at home.
In the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games competitors were granted a special dispensation. They were escorted from Heathrow under armed guard to the shooting centre at Bisley. Spectators watched the events behind screens and during training the shooters were guarded by armed officers.
http://new.edp24.co.uk/content/news...gory=news&itemid=NOED27 Jan 2008 18:19:16:530
