John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

I have never had the privilege to take part in either activity. The style of play in both paintball and airsoft is completely based on the low range of the device, which is about 40 metres for airsoft. It is far removed from real combat, due to the limitations of the devices themselves. This is a world away from practical and dynamic shooting, where 9 millimetres is the minimum calibre required to take part. Competitors move at speed, shooting their way through stages on an obstacle laden course. It is not a sport and should have no place in society. The Dáil voted for its prohibition last week.

There were some criticisms of the Minister's position which claimed that his response was over the top, but he expressed his concern several times about the possible creation of a gun culture. People felt that by bringing this Bill forward rather than dealing with criminal elements, it was seen as an over the top response that pretends to be tough on criminal activity. I do not think that this is a fair criticism. When the Minister voiced his concerns about a gun culture in Ireland, he was not talking about youngsters playing cowboys and Indians, but about people who felt they had the right to be granted a licence for any firearms they wanted, including extremely powerful handguns. This is the specific area of his concern. He is concerned with the growth in the use of handguns, especially when compared with the number of such guns in 2004 and 2005. He is also acting in response to a statement in the High Court about the proliferation of handguns. He also referred to people organising competitions where they run with loaded guns, shooting their way through obstacle courses, as well as competitions where results are achieved through accuracy, power and speed, rather than simply on accuracy as is the case with traditional "bull's-eye" static target shooting.

Practical and dynamic shooting have only begun to develop in Ireland in the last few years, but it clearly has a very vocal lobby. It has grown in a vacuum created by recent court decisions. In his opening statement in the Dáil, the Minister made the point that he was not prepared to allow that vacuum to continue. This is why he is bringing the Bill before the House. I do not believe that it has been rushed, because many submissions had already been made before publication.

Some Members feel the Minister is targeting a certain group and that he has no support. The reality is that many groups that represent various gun lobbies are in support of what the Minister has been saying and they support his Bill. People claim that we are anti-sports for the sake of a pretence of being hard on criminal activity, so it is important to note that many respected groups have reservations and have voiced their support in favour of the Minister's proposals. The NRAGC has 28,000 members and it took the original handgun challenge case a few years ago, and it has made its position very clear on practical shooting. The chairman of the Sports Shooting Association of Ireland, which represents almost all of the national governing bodies, has even written to the Minister in the past few days on the issue. He stated that he was aware of the Minister's concerns with practical and dynamic shooting, and he gave his personal assurance that it will be neither promoted nor condoned at any of the 35 affiliated clubs and ranges. To my mind, that is fairly strong support for the Minister's proposals.