Gun clubs: no recompense

MPs to Debate Compensation For Gun Owners

Gun owners are expected to win a package of compensation for their weapons worth at least £150 million following the Commons debate.

A compensation deal must be approved by Parliament before the ban can start.

Under the new law, the 160,000 pistols currently held by shooting enthusiasts will then have to be surrendered by October.

While owners will be compensated for the loss of their firearms, gun clubs and manufacturers are not expected to be recompensed for any loss of business.

But according to reports, gun clubs and shooters' rights groups are setting up offshore ranges and organising shooting holidays to continue the sport after the July deadline.

British shooters are already taking day trips to gun clubs in northern France and Belgium to shoot weapons soon to be outlawed in Britain.

According to the Times newspaper, there are plans to establish new pistol ranges on the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands, where the new law will not apply.

One group organised to represent shooters' rights has even negotiated for holidays in Florida for British gun enthusiasts. One man has sent his own handguns to a US club, where they will be cleared by Customs.

Home Office Minister Alun Michael said the compensation package would give shooters around £150 million for handing over their guns, but he warned gun manufacturers: "The idea of compensating business members for a change in the law is not the normal way that things are dealt with."

Speaking on BBC Radio's Today programme, he stressed that the Government was planning to ban .22 guns, after a free vote in the Commons, in spite of objections made by gun enthusiasts.

"It's quite clear that .22 pistols are lethal. They're portable. They can be hidden easily and an event like that at Dunblane could have been undertaken just as easily using .22 pistols as with larger calibre pistols," he said.

Mr Michael added: "It's sad for those who are shooters who have never committed, never intended to commit, any act of violence in their lives. But, frankly, the protection of the public, the protection of people, and the advice of police that a very clear line needs to be drawn, leads us all to the conclusion that there should be a complete ban on handguns."