Mr. Fergus Healy:

I fully accept that within the legislation, as such, when we refer to the type of gun used for Olympic standard shooting events, the intention was that people who wanted to participate in such sports events would be allowed to do so. We have a particular type of gun designed for that type of shooting event. While the rules of the Olympic Council, into which we have looked, outline the parameters in which shooting can take place, the specific nature of the guns used is quite different from that of the type of gun about which we are talking with respect to the police-military type gun. Picture No. 2 in the booklet I provided shows the Olympic standard-type gun used for target pistol shooting competitions in Olympic events. As members can see, it is designed with a particular grip in order to provide stability in aiming and centre-fire shooting.

The legislation, as structured, provides that the requirement to be met by applicants to use non-restricted firearms is to show that the firearm has been designed for the purpose for which it is intended. As such, the applicant can now create a recreational event and say he or she needs the gun to engage in that type of activity and that, therefore, it has been designed for that purpose. In effect, what has happened is that a new rule has been invented by the applicant to say he or she engages in a recreational shooting activity in which a particular gun, for example, a 9 mm or a .22 mm gun, is required. Therefore, he or she can get over the hurdle of meeting the requirement to show that the gun has been designed for a particular purpose.

Our main concern is the way the legislation is structured. People had certificates for 9 mm hand guns issued between 2004 and 2009 and could not reapply for a licence unless they had held a licence previously. From 2009 onwards one was excluded from applying for a licence for a restricted or high calibre handgun. What we find is happening is that the applicant is applying for a licence for a clone-type firearm - the .22 mm version of the 9 mm handgun. They look exactly the same; the only difference is the calibre of the bullet coming from the weapon. From the applications we have received around the country, people applying for licences for weapons are doing so for non-restricted .22 mm guns for target shooting. We are in a position similar to where we were in 2009. We have up to 1,600 licensed handguns and the legislation was introduced to try to regulate the position and deal with the issue. In effect, the sand has shifted; people can now apply for a gun licence knowing that they will succeed if they exhaust the process.