The Keyham tragedy changed Plymouth forever. For five years, I’ve been campaigning with the Keyham community and families to strengthen Britain’s gun laws, so that nothing like it ever happens again.
Today I am glad to share some good news. Several of our proposals to fix Britain’s gun laws have been included in a major new report by His Majesty’s police inspectorate, commissioned by the Home Office.
I’ve been arguing that our firearms laws are outdated and needing replacement and that is what the report says. It goes further and recommends that controls on shotguns should be as stringent as other firearms because they are just as lethal. That’s another argument I have been making consistently.
But changing the law isn’t enough, it needs to be consistently applied everywhere. And that’s why I’ve been arguing for a DVLA for guns – a national body to administer gun licenses – to remove the post code lottery. We know Devon and Cornwall Police failed us five years ago, the backlogs nationwide are too large and this is a solution to these problems.
The current system where firearms licences are granted by under-resourced and over-stretched local police forces isn’t sustainable and the Inspectorate making the same recommendation as I’ve been arguing is a substantial step forward. If adopted by Government this would improve the quality of decision making when it comes to deciding if someone is fit to hold a firearms licence.
Five years on from the Keyham tragedy, our community is still defined by the determination to build something better from it.
I’ve already spoken to the Policing Minister who has received a copy of this report. It’s a serious and credible set of recommendations that back the case we have all been making in Plymouth. I’ll be seeking further meetings with the Minister in the weeks ahead to progress this campaign further. We will get there. I will keep you updated with progress. Thank you, Plymouth.