11 April 2003
Around 8,000 guns have been handed in to police during the first half of the month-long firearms amnesty, including hundreds of handguns.
The amnesty runs until 30 April and comes ahead of the introduction of tough new gun laws. It gives people the opportunity to hand in illegal or unwanted firearms now without facing prosecution for their possession.
In the first week 3,775 firearms were handed in, including 563 handguns, along with 71,000 rounds of ammunition. The police estimate that they received around the same number in the second week. A rocket launcher was handed in to police in the West Midlands.
The figures show the amnesty is working, said Home Secretary David Blunkett.
"Gun crime blights our society," he said. "It can ruin lives, especially young lives, and tear apart communities. I have made it clear that the government will not sit back and allow a small minority of misguided individuals to spread fear and violence in their communities."
The government intends to introduce a new five-year minimum sentence for illegal possession of a prohibited firearm. New laws will also make it an offence to carry imitation guns and air weapons in a public place without lawful authority or reasonable excuse.
delicious
digg
facebook
