Ubiquitously considered unfit for purpose, the current national firearms database for the 43 separate police forces in England and Wales has desperately needed an overhaul for many years. Now at last the Home Office has put the National Firearms Licensing Management System (NFLMS) out to tender, with the contract valued at £17 million. This will be overseen by the contracting company BlueLight Commercial. As part of our ongoing firearms licensing campaign, the Countryside Alliance has been calling for renovation and full digitisation of the firearms licensing database, for which this development might help. 

The database holds information on the near half a million shotgun certificate holders and near 150,000 firearms certificate holders in England and Wales, and is notorious for its weaknesses in preventing efficient, up-to-date and effective licensing to take place within and across police forces. This is just one of the reasons why waiting times for grants, renewals, transfers and variations are in such an abysmal place in parts of the country. It is also a contributing factor in failures in firearms licensing by police forces which have led to tragedy. 

This is without doubt a positive step, however it will not fix the broken firearms licensing framework in England and Wales. The initial contract is for five years, when the new system will be ready to be rolled out is anyone’s guess, but those familiar with the implementation of new software systems across large and complicated organisations will know that teething can be very costly and time consuming. 

Details on the new system requirements are not forthcoming. It is hoped that integration with the medical marker system and the (similarly problematic) NHS databases is effective and quick. The other key system update required is that of gun sale and transfer – we are calling for real-time tracking of gun sales and transfers so that fraudulent and illegal attempts to acquire guns can be intercepted. Both of these requirements are essential for public safety to be ensured. 

The Countryside Alliance is also calling for the total overhaul of what we see as a fundamentally flawed firearms licensing system. We want the police to focus on law enforcement, not licensing – a function no force was ever set up to carry out. We want to see the creation of a single, centralised firearms licensing body, to replace the current system of an assortment of 43 separate licensing bodies (local constabularies) which vary from high-performing to shambolic. We are calling the Minister for Policing to implement this proposal, and you can help by asking your MP to do the same through our e-lobby. With this we can avoid unnecessary legislative changes and ensure that gun ownership is not compromised and shooting sports have healthy future.