The Firearms (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1997 was the second of two

Acts The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its message ...

of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprem ...

from 1997 that amended the regulation of firearms within Great Britain. It was introduced by the newly elected Labour government of

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of t ...

. The first Act was the

Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 The Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 was introduced in the United Kingdom by the Conservative government of John Major, in response to the Dunblane school massacre and the recommendations of the Cullen Report that followed it. It effectively banned ...

Background

The act was created in response to the

Snowdrop Petition The Dunblane massacre took place at Dunblane Primary School in Dunblane, near Stirling, Scotland, on 13 March 1996, when Thomas Hamilton shot dead 16 pupils and one teacher, and injured 15 others, before killing himself. It remains the deadlies ...

following the

Dunblane Massacre The Dunblane massacre took place at Dunblane Primary School in Dunblane, near Stirling, Scotland, on 13 March 1996, when Thomas Hamilton shot dead 16 pupils and one teacher, and injured 15 others, before killing himself. It remains the deadlie ...

. The previous Conservative government had exceeded the recommendations of the Cullen Report and introduced the

that banned "high calibre" handguns, greater than .22 calibre (5.6 mm). This new (No. 2) Act further prohibited the private possession of all cartridge handguns, regardless of calibre. The only handguns still allowed following the ban were: * Antique and muzzle-loading black-powder guns * Firearms of historic interest whose ammunition is no longer available ("Section 7.1" firearms) * Firearms of historic interest with current calibres ("Section 7.3" firearms) * Air pistols * Firearms which fall outside the Home Office definition of "small firearms". * Pistols used by hunters for humane dispatch The Act does not extend to Northern Ireland, where firearms regulations differ due to

the Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "i ...

. Northern Ireland law allows pistols for use as personal protection weapons, mainly by retired police or prison officers, but also prominent figures who were considered at risk. It also does not extend to Crown Dependencies such as the Channel Islands of Isle of Man, where handguns are still used in target sports.

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External links

* {{UK legislation Firearm laws United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1997 Gun politics in the United Kingdom Dunblane massacre

Background

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