Americans React to UK Gun Laws - They Aren't Illegal??
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- Опубліковано 18 кві 2024
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Reacting To My Roots
P.O. Box 439
Jasper, Indiana 47547
USA
In this video we react to UK gun laws for the first time. This was a really eye opening video. While we knew guns would be more strictly regulated in the UK than the US, we were shocked at how thorough the vetting process is. However, maybe even more shocking than the UK gun laws themselves, was learning about some of the guns that Brits have access to that you wouldn't otherwise expect. They can own an Uzi?!
Thanks for watching. If you enjoyed this reaction please give this video a thumbs up, share your thoughts in the comments and click the subscribe button to follow my journey to learn about my British and Irish ancestry.
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👉 Original Video:
• UK Gun Laws Explained
In the UK having a firearm is a privilege and healthcare is a right. In the US it is the other way around.
@graeradt.
Incorrect. As long as you meet all the legal requirements and qualifications a citizen has a RIGHT to a Shotgun Certificate or a Firearms Certificate.
Please do not spread disinformation.
@@stoater1551 Unless there is more that you left out... you have helped prove the original comment!
In the UK kinder eggs are a right, corn syrup is a hazard. In the US it is the other way around.
Topsy turvy land over there.
@@stoater1551 you literally just proved the original commenter's point. in the usa, unless you've committed mass murder and/or a serious dangerous crime, and are somehow out in public, you can legit walk up to any gun store and buy a gun (of course providing you're of age). in the uk, whether you're a criminal or not, there are various avenues you have to go down to purchase and legally own a gun and gun license. therefore, it is not a right, it is a privilege.
@@Mark_Bickerton
All you need to do is look up the law. Don't tell me I'm wrong.
"Personal protection" isn't a valid reason to be issued a gun licence in the UK.
Small nit-pick - IIRC, "Personal protection" *_IS_* a valid reason in Northern Ireland.
Best Wishes. ☮
to hint that it is for personal protection would be a red flag
@@gbulmer yes, as in the US, those guns for 'personal protection' also are quite good at killing innocent people.
That’s key but obviously so is the culture and in a densely populated mostly urban society sport and hunting reasons are probably less likely
@ivylasangrienta6093 normally that's the rule but in some cases its allowed. I have a family member who works for the govt and he's allowed to carry for protection.
So part of the reason that they come to your house, as part of the process, is to ensure that you have adequate arrangements to safely store a firearm on your property.
Yep, I was about to make a similar comment when I saw yours. How can the police be assured you have a secure gun cabinet if they don't come to your home and look? That's what they did when I had a musket, which is regarded the same as a shotgun.
The simple fact is that guns are so rare and culturally irrelevant in the UK that most people will go their entire lives never having seen a gun or heard a gunshot in real life. That is why some people think guns are illegal.
It is similar in Poland - and you just have to be sensible and competent to get a gun license. I got mine last year and it was as much cost and effort as getting a drivers license... and I got that on the first try while drivers license took me 4 attempts ;)
One guy did not believe me it was possible for an "everyday person" to get a gun license, so I described him the procedure, he got it and now is a bit cross with me as his wife is now bugging him to get a very expensive one ;)
What is even more bizarre we have less gun per capita then UK while at the same time we have more freedom in the guns we can own then some US states ;) Oh, and pre-1885 black powder guns without integrated cartridges can be bought over the counter and do not require registration. Just like civilian suppressor for modern guns :)
I'm 59 first time I held a gun ,fired a gun was on holiday in Vegas
@@andrzej2501 I mean, things tend to be permitted until there's a reason not to.
The culture itself is just totally different from the US in most of Europe.
If you want one takeaway from this, its that you can own a gun for a good reason, and 'self defence' does not count as a good reason.
Small nit-pick - IIRC, "Personal protection" *_IS_* a valid reason in Northern Ireland.
Best Wishes. ☮
As a former armed police specialist I'd argue that self defence is a good reason however our self defence laws aren't very good.
@@vinnyganzano1930 The issue is that as soon as 'self defence' is acknowledged as a good reason to own a firearm, the incentive for criminals to carry and use firearms increases.
@@f0rth3l0v30fchr15t News flash, criminals don't care! The UK is awash with illegal handguns, all carried by? Law abiding citizens? No criminals! Handgun death are rising because of criminals, who suffers? Law abiding citizens.
@@vinnyganzano1930 Self defence is non existent. Police mainly seem to deal with the aftermath and the citizens are expected to be victims then call police.
One thing that annoys me when this topic comes up is that you always get some US-American bringing up knife crime as if it's equal to their gun crime. In fact knife crime is more than twice as bad in the US as well 😬
To be fair all those drive by knifings, and accidental stabbings when cleaning knives are quite the problem 🙄
I think there is more chance of survival from a knife wound than a gun shot.
It's also worth adding that "Knife crime" in the UK doesn't even mean violence.... it means violence AND people simply caught in possession of a knife that they can't legally posses. You can only possess a very small knife that isn't lockable legally, or other ceremonial knives, unless of course you have good justification, i.e a carpenter or carpet fitter going back home from work with some Stanley knives on them... would of course be acceptable.
However the same carpet fitter on his day off taking his knives to the pub with him wouldn't be acceptable.
In the US since it's not illegal to my knowledge to posses a knife, given you can possess guns, "Knife crime" would only include crimes where a knife was used. In the UK "Knife crime" includes ANY involvement with a knife, whether someone is injured with it or not.
If a man is stopped and has a knife on him, and arrested, that counts as a "knife crime" despite the fact nobody was injured with it.
Agreed, knife crime is less known in the States because gun crime is more prolific, and makes more headlines.
You are correct...however their knife crime is not TWICE as bad as here. It is more than ours but not double. Last numbers I checked were fairly similar. I can't remember the numbers that they measured it out of, whether it was per 100, 1000, 10,000, or a million people but the UK was around 5 per however many, Vs around 7 in the US.
In Ireland possession of a firearm gets you 10 years in the slammer, and rightly so. Very, very few people have gun licences. If you have to have guns for your own protection, you are living in a failed state.
That's misleading. Plenty of people have gun lisences in the country side. Possession of a firearm without a lisence gets you ten years...
My relatives lived there in the 90's and had their shotgun stolen by lowlifes who stood in the baby crib to get through the window!
When seconds count minutes don't matter. No matter how good police are they cannot defend you. This is especially true in the western world in 2024 where savages are flooding over the borders and committing more violent crime.
Its crazy how Americans (in general) can’t even begin to wrap their heads around the very basic concept that a lot of other first world countries… just simply don’t want guns. It literally has nothing to do with government control or limiting freedoms - we just see what’s happening in America and just don’t want them here. It’s as simple as that!
A lot of them can't seem to understand the precept of universal health care either. They put it down to the 'socialism'.
Americans do not know what a social democracy is.
Some people want them, some people don't , you're giving the impression that hardly nobody wants them here , which is completely false. That's your personal opinion about "seeing what's happening in America" so no, it's Not as simple as that !
I think Switzerland has more gun ownership than the US, they all have to do national service and they get given a gun at the end that they keep. Don't hear much about them shooting each other all the time though, wonder why 🤔
@@Dragon_Slayer_Ornstein Switzerland has 8 million people, America has 334 million people what are you blethering about.
@@EnochPowellsLibrarian in the UK, which I’d say is a valid comparison to the US; 3.3% of the population own guns. So when you say that I’m giving the impression that hardly nobody wants them, I’m curious just how low that figure needs to be for you to consider it not a personal opinion? 2% 1% 0%? Who are these other countries you talk about that think America is setting a good example of gun culture? If people want to own a gun, go for it, I’m not stopping them. But like I said, ‘unable to grasp the concept’… we.don’t.want.guns. You didn’t actually think that my use of the word ‘we’ was meant to include literally every single person outside of the US right??
I'm very glad that most people here couldn't give a toss about guns.
I think many of us are interested like myself but we'll just stick to video games or plan a holiday to the US to try them out
Cattle. I'm not. A weak minded people. Obedient slaves
Hi, I’d just like to clarify about doctors (I work in a doctors’ surgery).
To get a licence you need your application to be signed off by a GMC-registered doctor who has full access to your medical records. This is usually your own GP, but doesn’t have to be. If it’s not from your own GP, if you’re granted a licence, your GP will be informed.
Applicants must declare relevant medical conditions to the police, and if you don’t mention something your GP does, no licence. GPs have a legal responsibility to inform the police of any new diagnosis of a relevant condition.
If you work in a surgery, and access a patient’s records, and they have a firearms licence, when you close their record a pop up screen appears saying you must infirm the police if you are aware of any possibility of a new diagnosis of…followed by a list of relevant conditions. Obviously, admin staff will tell the GP, who’ll make that decision.
Hope that helps.
Are we talking about types of deppression etc ?
@@jamesmcbride6304
Acute stress, stress caused by trauma, suicidal thoughts/self-harm, depression, anxiety, dementia, mania (bipolar, psychotic), personality disorder, neurological condition, alcohol or drug abuse, and finally a catch-all ‘any other mental or physical disease you think might be relevant’. For any of those ‘the police will have to be informed’. You should also inform the patient that you’re informing the police, and that the cost of this is the patient’s responsibility. Yes, even with the NHS, there are some things you need to pay for - usually letters to external bodies (insurance claims, HGV licence, etc).
@@stevewoodhouse621 Well that must be half the population that wouldnt be able to obtain a fire arm then. 😀 Well. realistically its the only way of reducing the risk of people being shot by unhinged dangerous people. Thanks for that info
Wow, thanks for commenting! It's always nice to hear from someone who has firsthand knowledge of the topic. Definitely helps us understand it better.
@@reactingtomyroots effectively, if you have ever had depression it is very unlikely you will be granted a licence
The only reason you need a gun for protection is because so many other people carry guns! Armed robbery does occur in the UK but is generally quite rare. There just aren't that many guns around, so it never occurs to me to worry that someone might shoot me in this country. I haven't even seen a real gun that often. They are just not part of our daily lives.
Until I travelled to the US in the very late 90s early 2000s I had never seen a gun, I was 40 at the time. I know it’s different cultures, but it still amazes me how easy it appears that accessibility to firearms is.
The thing is that in Great Britain we don’t buy guns to protect ourselves. If you say in the interview that you’re buying it for self-protection you won’t be issued with a shotgun licence or firearms certificate, it would be a huge red flag for the police officer doing the interview.
We don’t need firearms to protect ourselves, I served in the military for 12 years, when I left it never even occurred to me to apply for a civilian firearms certificate. Why would I need a gun in my home?
In case someone breaks in and attacks you. What a stupid question.
@@WJS774 As I said, why would I need a firearm in my home? I live in the UK, not a war zone. 🙄
@WJS774 People don't shoot us in our homes here... stupid comment
@@ffotograffyddat the same time, what if somebody does break into your home?
@@One_Stone61 cricket bat
I do not know anyone who has a gun here. I don't think that it's even on the radar for most people.
Our system is not perfect, and mistakes have been made. It also does not prevent determined criminals from obtaining illegal weapons. However, our regulations generally work because most people are not against our level of control.
they'll become more prevalent as Muslims and other cultures make demands as their populations grow...
We (my dad) owned shotguns and rifles all throughout my youth, (80 and 90s), the only time I spent with him outside the pub, was shooting. I've never bothered to go for my licence, didn't really have the interest after leaving the military.
I do know quite a few with weapons and I've been on shoots with them, but I live semi rural. Not so much over the last decade though.
I went to a range just after lockdown for a stag party, it was pretty shit, being around a load of people that have never been around a weapon, was tedious to say the least. Everyone turned into Rambo all of a sudden. That was the last time I shot.
You probably do know people with weapons, it's just they don't bring attention upon themselves. Usually because look strangely upon them
If you do own a gun in the UK it's not the sort of thing you openly discuss with friends and neighbours. Much better to keep a bit quiet about it, for safety's sake.
@@met54 this is the difference, you are very very unlikely to know who in your community has access to a gun. Its just not a topic of conversation, no one thinks about it, no one really cares to know -- I suppose in America where they're so common, it pays to know who has one
I know a couple of people who own guns. But they are into target shooting. I believe at least one of them dosn't even store their gun at home preferring to pay to have it securely stored in the armoury of their local range
5:50 the home visit is to ensure that you have a secure place to keep the guns (basically, gun safe bolted to the wall is only acceptable option) and to ensure that ammunition is stored separately from the firearm
**Regarding a “good reason”:**
An individual cannot simply say “I go to the shooting range” and that be an acceptable reason for owning a firearm. You would have to demonstrate continued involvement with a shooting club for a number of years, taking part in events and activities frequently and on a consistent basis. So, you couldn’t just sign up to a club and apply for a license; you would have to be a member of said club for a substantial period of time and with a record of regular participation in shooting sports.
That's partly true but you don't have to take part in events or activites (aside from going to the club to shoot from time to time). If you can only make it to the club a few times a year then you inform the club and they inform the police. As for your initial grant, you must be a probationary member of a HO approved club for a minimum of 3 months (though many insist on 6) and only then are you voted in by the committee as a full member - after which you can apply for your FAC.
If you are a member of a gun club there is nothing to say you must log your visits to said club. the Police try to make you do this, or if you shoot vermin on a farm they want you to log the dates and times etc. But this is not a legal requirement, just the local Police doing their best to make things more difficult for you.
You can have guns in the US but not in chocolate lol.kinder eggs
haha yeah, pretty crazy!
@@reactingtomyroots aar andy's airgun reviews, is a good channel to learn from if you are interested. Not kinder eggs they are barred.
I’m a WW2 re-enactor and part of a living history group, I had a police check, interview, references and medical check before I was allowed to own my rifle (British Lee Enfield). The rifle is stored in a gun safe and the police can turn up anytime (usually arranged) to check that I’m abiding by the rules.
yes even some museums have to have licences ,we have ww11 weapons in our s we do live blank firing for a few mins during our weapons talk, we are only allowed a certain number of days a year to fire the ww11 weapons ,then we have strict rules. everything is kept separate and locked and checked often even in the museum building
It's only 'devisive' in America. In every other country it is literally insane for everyone to have guns.
Big difference between the UK and US is the UK puts the rights of those who don’t own guns above the rights of those who do or want to own guns🤷♂️
This is what a civilised country does.
What is so wrong with having a strong background check.
Nothing at all! It's a great model, however it has not "solved" uk gun crime, almost entirely involving handguns that are effectively banned for most law abiding citizens. Gun crime in the UK is getting worse, and it seems government answers this by targeting, not the people commiting the crimes.
@JasonLaneZardoz you clearly didn't listen to the video. we have 30 to 50 deaths from guns.
Are you being thick and stupid
Do the Black drug dealers have to take it?Moron.
@@JasonLaneZardoz It pretty much has. Sure there is still gun related crime, but only 50-60 deaths annually, of a population of around 53 million, that's considerably less, almost non existent. You cannot remove it entirely, that is a pointless goal to have.
Its also important to note that gun crime in the UK is also very vague. incidents involving BB guns or anything classed as a firearm, such as pepper spray, is also recorded as gun crime. It does not necessarily mean a firearm in the bullet shooting variety.
Maybe if they did that they wouldnt have lunatics going into schools and killing kids
Children died at Dunblane, gun restrictions were tougher in a year.
It punished people who were very unlikely to use guns illegally.
It's very hard to get a firearm now even if you have a history of being a responsible firearm user, like myself, former military and armed police.
@@vinnyganzano1930 I don't want vets or ex armed police to have fire arms either, sounds like you'd just breed vigilante 'justice'
@@michaelwells8412
You're an idiot.
@@michaelwells8412 But you are more than happy with the UK being awash with handguns in the hands of criminals, because this is the reality, and it's getting worse. In the meantime law abiding citizens are the only ones who are penalized, I think your comment says more about you than the OP you were replying to.
@@vinnyganzano1930 why do you want a gun? are you a famer or a member of a gun club?
**Regarding Pistols**
Handguns must meet the minimum length requirement. In other words, you can own a glock 17 but it must have a fixed arm stock attached to the grip, which rests in the elbow of the holder when firing. This prevents it being concealed and classifies it as being over the minimum length. Anything less than this is illegal, and attempting to remove or modify fixed stocks is also a criminal offence.
Ownership of a firearm for personal defence just isn’t on the radar in the UK. As A British citizen now living in France I still find it slightly disturbing to see the Police routinely carrying a pistol.
It is, the government won't talk about it for security reasons. Section 5 of the 1968 is there for a reason and thousands of civilians carry guns every day in England for self defence. Once of the criteria for the licences is typically you don't talk about it.
Not divisive here in the UK. We just don't feel the need to own a gun. Spent 16 years as a soldier and a lifetime in a government security organization - As a soldier I was issued with the tools of the job and once I left the army I've never required or wanted one. I worked in the US for four years and had a pistol and a carbine there but never once regretted having to sell them when I left.
There is something very comfortable about knowing there are not thousands of armed imbeciles running around. Never once felt the need for one. Long may it remain so.
agreeee , so nice to know a 10yo cant gun me down out of the blue , thanks for your service as well! my sis been in the army for 28~ years
I’b beg to differ. The fact that in the US, they don’t come to your house as part of background checks, is ‘crazy’.
IIRC the purpose of the "home visit" is to establish that there is a genuinely a secure way to store the weapons and its not left to the applicant going "yeah, trust me bro, I got a gun safe". If the USA required this step I suspect the number of incidents where small children find a gun is a random drawer or shelf, and then end up shooting themselves/siblings/parents/bystanders would be significantly reduced.
it is quite crazy how little checks there are, like i like the idea of being able to get a gun, but just the fact that you dont need a license or something that says you know how to safely handle a firearm and have passed the checks, seems crazy to me.
That's another constitutional violation. The fact you guys are ok with the government just showing up at your door for a visit is scary and reminds me of 20th century events. I'm glad I live in a nation with government limitations and constitutional rights.
@@S1D3W1ND3R015 You can say that all you like. But as a UK police officer with 7 years in the job, I have NEVER once been to someone's address to check on their guns, nor have any of the firearms officers I know or have worked with.
The fact they "can" legally do it doesn't mean they do.
In the UK police officers can LEGALLY pull over ANY motor vehicle they want on a public road, WITHOUT any reason being required. But for the most part do officers do that? No.
I will always have a reason for stopping a car - and I have never stopped a car "Just for the sake of it".
nope, it is my right to own anything I want without state meddling, you are a bootlicker
This is just common sense in most western countries outside of the USA
Born and raised, and still living in a rural area of England, I grew up around guns. As a youth, my friends and I all had air rifles and air pistols - .17 & .22 versions. We would set up shooting ranges in our back gardens or even more remote parts of woodlands. As we grew a bit more, some of us veered off into joining rifle clubs, and a few of us found work with estate owners, conservation & forestry commisions, club seniors, and farmers, to which we had to aquire the relevant licences and certificates for the specific purposes bestowed upon us for work or leisure(property conservation on large private estates, pest control etc) and so have had intimate access to firearms most of our lives, and the processes involved in attaining and keeping them.
It's quite funny really because most normal folk here assume nobody owns or even has access to firearms, although some are aware due to the nature of our environment out here. Personally, and in my village alone, I myself of course, know pretty much everyone who owns permits, and it would surprise many folk. At least 1 in 10 people I spend leisure or work time with here has a permit at the very least. Many secure store theirs at clubs though, but a few of us have robust secure storage on our properties.
I adore my Ruger. I take zero chances of my ownership privilege being revoked.
On club shoot days, you'll often see 10-15 of us walking through the village with shoulder holdalls - of which many just presume to be fishing tackle holdalls. Police drive by on occasion, not even a blink of concern from them because they, fortunately know who most of us are, and know where we're going and for why.
I don't think the majority of people around here would be shocked to discover we're carrying rifles and shotguns per se because most people understand it kind of comes with countryside life. Maybe the townies and city folk from dozens of miles away might be a little perturbed, but hey, urban populations have bigger problems than what we're doing out in the stix. I'd refuse flat an offer to live in a UK city for free at this point.
Country living is life.
I'm a serving UK police officer, in a non-firearms role.
I also legally own a low-powered airsoft rifle known as a RIF (Realistic Imitation Firearm) which looks identical to a real version. It's an M4 in black and it looks very realistic, it's also made of metal and isn't one of those cheap ones you can buy for under £100, it weighs probably 5-6 kilograms.
Due to the fact it has less than 12 ib/ft torque power at the muzzle, it's classified as a "low power" weapon and a FAC (Firearms Certificate) is not legally required, the only regulation is that you must be 18 or over to obtain one and as I understand you can't sell it to someone under 18 either. I also used to own an air rifle which fired pellets, which I eventually sold some years back.
A good mate of mine has several low powered air weapons.
Of course, whilst these are legal to possess, common sense applies. If you were to go and stand out in public view with it, you can guarantee within a matter of minutes there would be several firearms officers pointing very real guns at you.
For what it's worth, in my role as a UK police officer, I have stopped around 3 people in their cars in total who have firearms licenses. None of them had their weapons with them at the time, but one young lad who was actually competing in the Olympics had shotgun shells in the boot of his car but no shotgun, again this was legal in any case as he had the shells only.
Wanting a gun just for "self-defence" isn't a reason and you would be rejected. It needs to be a VALID reason, i.e you're a farmer and need it for vermin control, you go to shooting competitions, etc... not just "I want a gun". You also need to be able to prove that you do attend shooting clubs and they WILL check this with the club you state you attend.
Some offences will prevent you from ever owning a gun, most of the time it's "serious" or "indictable" offences heard in the crown court - such as Rape, Murder, Robbery, Kidnap etc.. usually if you are convicted of these crimes you are banned from holding a gun sometimes for perhaps 5 or 10 years but quite often you have a lifetime gun ban. As a general rule of thumb if you have ever been to prison you can guarantee you will never legally be able to possess a gun.
As it's a privilege, not a right, you need to demonstrate good behaviour and that you can be sensible with a gun, and that they can trust you with it.
They won't give you a license for one if you have convictions for robbery... because there would be serious concerns you may then use that gun to go and commit "Armed robberies" and they would be heavily criticised if they permitted you to have one in this context.
It's not lb ft that is torque, which is rotational force. It's ft-lb and is a measurement of energy which is a measure of a pound of force applied over 1 foot
Fun fact. There are no regulations or restrictions to own crossbows in the UK other than being over 18. Some of these can be extremely powerful with energy equivalents of high powered firearms.
@@landofnor ; yes it is 12ft/lb muzzle velocity. I don't know if it still applies, but there was also a maximum cronagraphed feet per second rule for air weapons, can't remember what it was now.
@@met54 I've not heard of that before tbh. That would depend on the caliber, profile and weight of the slug. Using energy is sensible and that's a constant and the momentum and speed are proportional to the weight and energy. In Scotland you're not even allowed these anymore. I've always had air guns ever since I was a young child. When you're brought up with guns and learn respect them and understand the responsibility and safety then I think they are a great thing. It's easy to say let's ban something because of a few isolated incidents but I don't think it's fair to demonize the majority of responsible and sensible gun owners. Why are we not allowed higher caliber pistols at gun ranges for example?
@@met54 I stand corrected, it's been years since I actually looked at the definition and legislation but I recall 12 being the number.
If I recall the figure is around 300fps on a chrono... reason I say that is that years back me and my mate went to an airsoft game. He had his own rifle and at that point I didn't, the marshalls would produce a device and you would fire into it, it would measure the speed. If it was over 300fps you were prohibited from using your weapon in the game and sent away. A lot of those I saw were very close to the fps limit, one got to 297.
With my airsoft rifle there's different bolts available, blue bolt, red bolt, etc. I forget exactly which colour mine is and I've not used it for a good few years now but I believe it's the 300fps one.
In the UK guns are not used for personal defence or security. They are for hunting or competitive shooting. Gun registration doesn't just involve paperwork, it needs a full Police check. My father and brothers had several shot guns for hunting, but no hand guns. I held a licence for a short time but didn't enjoy the hunting as much as target shooting. Adding - when my Dad bought two new guns to replace older (and unsafe) versions, the new law had come in that meant guns and ammunition must be kept in a secure, locked cabinet. (gun safe) Dad welded sheet metal together to form the box, with steel hinges and three separate locks. The whole thing weighed almost 750kg and needed a concrete pad to seat it on! The keys were not kept together. The ammunition was kept in a different room, again, in a locked, steel box. Good job we had a large house!
You can actually own a shotgun with no need for a licence aslong as you keep it with someone who has a licence and you use it on their land
Personal defence is a valid reason in N Ireland.
I serve in a UK police force.
A colleague of mine has a shotgun license and keeps two shotguns at his parent's address. He's not an old man either and he's only in his 30's.
I won't own a gun never will I have no criminal record but I can imagine my mental illness will fell me for a licence
@@fossy4321you guys can have handguns can't you.
I think gun ownership is a divisive issue in the USA, not the UK. We don't consider we have a right to carry arms over here. I don't know how many people have guns in the UK, but rifles are mainly used by farmers to protect their stock from attack from foxes, dogs, etc. Rifles are also used for hunting. Citizens of the UK would never consider having a gun in the home for self-defence. It's just not part of our culture or mindset.
The difference is that The Gun is so intrinsically linked with the formation of the USA, that it has become a symbol of ideals.
Here in the UK, guns are merely tools and not culturally iconic symbols."
Some clarifications...
Medical reports upon applying for a shotgun or firearm license are now mandatory.
Two references are required for a firearm license application, one for a shotgun.
Home visits are carried out to confirm storage arrangements, or to confirm serial numbers in the case of license renewals (which last 5 years).
License-exempt airguns are based on the muzzle energy,
I think the references bit has now been scrapped.
We had a primary school shooting in Dunblane Scotland [1996] 16 children [aged 5/6 years old] and their teacher were killed 😢 and 15 others injured before he shot himself. 3 months after we had a firearms amnesty and around 23,000 firearms were surrendered and we have not had any more school shootings since.
Absolutely one is one too many 😢
Yet kids in London stab themselves to death on a daily basis. You going To ban knives
Plenty of shootings going on in London, and it isn't legal owners responsible for it.
@@claregale9011 Agreed. In fact I find it depressing to hear about shooter drills in US schools.. what a sad and pathetic state of affairs. And some feel the solution lies in arming the teachers in the classroom... a full on shoot-out in a classroom? God help us all
People didn't surrender their guns they were forced to give them up.
Good reason is you are a farmer and need a gun to control livestocl. Bad reason is: "protection".
You mean "protection" is a good reason that the ruling powers won't accept.
Im 32 and haven't known anyone own a gun here in Britain ever 😂
The only time I've seen guns in real life in Britain is armed police at the airport as a kid or in Birmingham occasionally.
I am 36 an know more ppl in my local area that DO own guns than don't. The countryside is different than towns an city's. We ain't the same an we don't wanna be city ppl.
I'm in the UK and i have 2.
@@mobi1etone I have 14 an am in the uk, at least 1 goes to work with me most days!
To own a gun in Ireland you need a license and gun cabinet, join a club or organisation and only hunt on game land
The problem with guns in America is many Americans don't see them as a problem.
America is a bigger country and not compacted as the uk , here i did own a 977 , which is legal but because i gave up the sport , i gave it to my friend who was also in the army and who has his head screwed on .
But i kept my rambo knife and it is in the attic so that no one can use it including me.
Guns ain't the problem that gun would not harm any1 if the human didn't pick it up. the people are the problem. I'm in the uk and don't agree with America's gun law, but people need to stop blaming the guns and look at who they allow to have one .
They're not, it's the people that wield them that are the problem.
@@victoriabrooks7009 wrong i picked up the sa80 and slr including lmg and many others ,but it was not due that i had one it was there for to defend others and your self .
There is a 3 second rule .
@@victoriabrooks7009sensible restrictions like those in the UK would help but they would be unconstitutional in the US so a constitutional amendment would be required and that would require cross party consensus…….
The majority of gun owners in the UK are farmers lol
And their mums!
@@davidholden2658 was waiting for this 😅😅😅
@@davidholden2658 Only if they sell apples... And strawberries.
@@TheGeekBox lol Me too.
@@davidholden2658 Everyones packing round ere.
Hi Both, Reference air weapons...pistols are allowed up to 6 ft-lbs or 8.2 joules max and air rifles are 12 ft-lbs or 16.3 joules. The house visit and interview are normally combined together, and it's to ensure you have adequate safe storage for the licensed weapons. There's no restrictions of how many weapons you can own nor on magazine capacity for semi-auto rifles or single shot rifles which I know states like California and New York state have restrictions on magazine capacity and even air pistols allowed in Britain. Plus Australia has tougher air weapon laws than Britain!! Finally the United States Second Amendment comes from Britain, it was adopted and formalised into US Constitutional law by the founding Father's, from the Bill of Rights 1689...so you can thank us Brits 😊
Lindsay: "I wonder how hard it is to get a licence?"
The UK: "We don't care! Because culturally we don't want em."
Not everyone doesn't want them. 3.6 million already own guns.
@@Bpg5012trick Nearly 3.6 million too many.
@@daveborder7751maybe but it's pretty clear that it's not really a problem in the UK.
@@daveborder7751 So you wish to stop these people enjoying their sport. Which sport do you enjoy that could be banned ?
@@vanmanwales1590 Shooters who represent England should be allowed, shooting clubs for the general public should be banned. None of the sports I enjoy has guns involved.
Look for the Dumblane Massacre this tragedy is the reason the gun laws were tightened
One asshole ruined it for everyone else.
“Dunblane “
Don't forget Hungerford.
The law that governs firearms in the UK is the Firearms Act 1968. The Hungerford massacre saw the act amended with the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988, and Dunblane saw the act once again amended with the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997. The labour government elected after the 1997 Act government amended it further with the Firearms (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1997.
There was also the hungerford massacre back in the late 80’s
@@dubiumguy"Firearms (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1997" which stopped our Olympic / Commonweath pistol shooters from training in this country
Hey guys. My great uncle had a rifle as he lived on a farm in the UK and hunted hare and pheasant to eat. It takes 3-6 months to be assessed. The police have the right to remove your license at any point and you are subject to yearly checks.
Pistols were banned post Dunblane school shooting nearly 30 years ago now. It's to try and stop people walking around with a concealed weapon. Which is illegal in the UK.
There was a recent story of a gang importing gun parts from the US and putting the guns together, There's also the issue recently with 3d printers being used.
Carrying an illegal weapon in the UK is a serious offence. There was a case recently where a 17 year old was arrested after dropping a gun during a police chase. He got 5 years in jail for being in possession of an illegal gun.
There were 28 gun deaths in the UK last year which mostly are made up of gang on gang.
Pistols weren't really banned. You can have pretty much any pistol as long as it meets the length requirement. You can make most pistols legal with a replacement barrel or a non-folding stock. As you say, all they're really concerned about is concealment. It's a lot harder to get into a school carrying a hunting rifle. I think the laws make perfect sense. Not everyone SHOULD be able to own a gun. And you don't need full auto, semi auto, or high capacity magazines for hunting or target shooting. As for home defence...what's even the point in a gun. Just lock your door and one of your neighbors with an open door will get robbed instead. Burglars aren't kicking doors in unless they know nobody is there. Besides, it's so easy for unemployed young people to get on benefits and get everything paid for, in the UK, that there's not much incentive to go around burgling houses.
Now bladed weapons, that's a whole nuther story.
You should have no problem getting a firearms licence if you are a member of the same lodge as your local Chief Constable. I think you get my drift. 😎
@@cryptotharg7400 No need. As long as you know the handshake, you're good to go.
Assessment times have swung wildly since the shooting spree in Plymouth. I know some people that have been waiting for over 2 years and others who get them in 2 months
You cannot just walk or drive around with your licenced firearm or any other weapon; you have to have a very good reason to have it, eg. going to the range or work, and it must be extremely secure. Even for having a knife, if you say it's for protection, that's classed as intent, and you're likely to be seeing the inside of a cell. This also applies to having a hammer, baseball bat, etc under the driver's seat of a car. We do not tolerate the carrying of weapons, though obviously, some eejits still do it.
This is the norm in civilised countries.
It appears, looking from the outside, that the major difference between the US and Europe is here in Europe there is not the fetishization of firearms that some sections of the US seems to suffer from.
Yes guns are a symbol of freedom and tradition over there
@@djs98bluefear isn't freedom
That comes from a combination of being a country that was born from armed struggle, having a huge gun manufacturing industry playing a key part of their economy and very powerful gun lobbyists (i.e. the NRA). Whereas most UK history taught in schools comes from eras when guns didn't even exist, not sure there are any UK small arms manufacturers and if we have a gun lobby I couldn't name them, even as a UK citizen
@@BigAlCapwn FNH UK are a manufacturer of small arms
@@BigAlCapwn, the closest to the NRA would be BASC (British Association for Shooting and Conservation)
Even when I applied for a shotgun licence, which is considered a right under UK law, I received a home visit from a police officer. It was a nice friendly cup of tea and a chat, but I was definitely being psychologically evaluated.
That's pretty surprising to us.
@@reactingtomyroots keeping insane or doggy people away from a gun?
One of the reasons I'd say we don't worry much about criminals with guns in the UK, is that usually, the amount of jail time you recieve for using a gun in a crime is more than what you'd get for the crime itself. It's not worth the risk or hassle to use a gun in, say, a mugging or burglary.
Also, it's why "home invasions" is a very US thing. In the UK, it's not very common for crminals to choose to break into someones house if they know that someone is inside. If all you have is a knife or blunt weapon, any potential fight is a risk.
Not as much of a risk as breaking into a home in a US neighbourhood with high gun ownership. Criminals just don't do that. They go for people that they know are unarmed.
Guys, listen to what they say. Hunting rifles WOULD need to be licensed. Its only air powered rifles that don't need licensing. And no. Don't bring guns into the UK by ANY means. You WILL be arrested.
Essentially, outside the armed services and armed police, unless you are a farmer, groundskeeper, or belong to a shooting club, we don't care about guns or gun ownership. You guys have the freedom to carry guns with all that that leads to. We have the freedom FROM the fear of guns. Its wonderful.
You say that until someone shows up with a gun.
You can get a revolver or a rifle easily and legally within the UK that is "obsolete caliber" a criminal could easily make their own ammunition for these guns but they don't they just steal modern equiptment from the army and smuggle them. Albanian gangs are selling AR-15s, Glocks, Shotguns, fully automatic AK rifles, UZIs and belt fed machine guns all throughout Europe including the UK and theres numerous videos of Islamic gangs firing these sorts of weapons throughout Europe.
Until you were in the EU I technically could arrive with my guns for a competition with the EU gun certificate... sadly no longer...
@@budgetcollectables2810 And your source is what, Russia Today? ;)
@@andrzej2501 Source: their social media accounts
You'll sometimes see those videos pop up under #haraga on youtube too.
More recently a Carribean man in Ireland made a TikTok telling "asylum seekers" to arm themselves so theres also that.
You should be able to see some of the firearms they carry if you look up "Dijon gang war" that was one of the incidents where they published numerous videos brandishing and firing weapons on their social media accounts.
I used to own a .357 magnum revolver and a 10mm Colt Delta Elite. When the law changed I had to hand them in to the police and was paid compensation from the government.
blokes got airsoft and paintball all look real must be checked and secure
Ian that us some hardware I've always wanted a colt peacemaker
More fool you wanker, some of us had more brains and could see the long Game.
It's ashame you could have actually legally kept your guns if they were made before 1990 (under section 7.1 or 7.3) or just transferred them to a range in Northern Ireland (and still actually kept them on your licence). Not many people knew that at the time though sadly.
@@davedavids57 I was totally unaware of this.
I've never left the house with even the slightest thought of encountering a gun . It isn't part of the culture in the uk. I've only ever seen one in the hands of service personnel or specially trained Police officers at times of High alert in public places .
Our culture is fast changing.
Where do you live 😂
@@nikkijayne4451that's not OUR culture 😉
Many of the police I see in London and at airports in the UK openly carry automatic weapons, Sadly gone are the days when I never ever saw police carry weapons.
I was in Manchester a few weeks after the Arena bombing and some armed police guy was in my mind quite careless about where he was pointing his smg. Should never have the barrel pointed anywhere but the floor in my understanding, but he was casually raising his weapon and it definitely crossed my sightline. And these are our trained professionals.
I’m from the UK and there seem to be 2 major differences between the UK and the US.
1st in the UK ‘personal protection’ is not considered a valid reason to own a gun.
2nd in the UK, if you want a gun you have to prove to the police that you are going to use it for one of a few valid reasons. There’s the assumption that you don’t need a gun and it’s up to you to prove otherwise.
Guns for personal protection doesn't work anyway.
If it did so many Americans wouldn't be getting shot 😂
In Georgia they hand loaded guns out to kids at Halloween instead of candy.
In the UK we do have an armed police unit with guns in case of any emergency situation
Many of the police I see in London and at airports in the UK openly carry automatic weapons, Sadly gone are the days when I never ever saw police carry weapons.
i remember when i was in school and the police came in to talk to us about guns and stuff. they said that we had only 3 armed officers for the entire county of 700 thousand people
@@daspeed198 most places unfortunately have far more now which is a awful thought of the place we live in. You can Google how many firearms officers in UK to find out for your force.
There's a massive issue with recruiting firearms officers. They don't get paid any more than their non firearms colleagues. So they can't recruit any!
The Sweeney also still carry sidearms-they have to really dealing with armed robbers.
Look up Hungerford massacre and Dunblane massacre. These two events changed the law to what we have today.
Agreed. Terrible tragedies.
It's quite interesting who was arguing against the criminalisation of handguns at the time. Without public pressure, it's unlikely the Government at the time would have done anything.
And that was driven by the public demanding changes in the law.
@avaggdu1 they essentially did fo nothing to prevent further incidents, the police and government tried to cover up up the horrendous failings by the police and put the blame on guns, guns that T.H should not have been in possession of at that time.
They partially changed the law. They changed what licences the police can issue not the Home Office. So if you have lots of money and want a machine gun you just have to apply directly to the Home Office under section 5.
We are fortunate in the UK to have a relatively small nation with a relatively effective police force. Vast areas of America are very remote and the policing system relies on armed, law abiding citizens because it would be untenable to police such areas with an urban model.
Furthermore, there's a tiring and sneering British media trope about 'guns bad'. The reality is that most killings in the USA are carried out by illegal firearms. Those states which have carry laws have very low crime figures of assault and burglary and knife crime us almost unherd of. You checked our UK figures for these recently.
We can only have an unarmed society whilst our society remains relatively high trust. The way things are going, this is unlikely to last. Already Austria, Sweden, Norway, Slovakia and Italy are seeing a massive increase in legal firearm ownership because the trust in those societies and the policing model is breaking down.
The days of being able to sneer at Americans for their guns are not going to last for ever, the disintegration of trust in our society, driven by the fracturing of communities, will inevitably result in an armed civilian population.
So basically, they do a mental health evaluation on you as part of the evaluation.
I think got it right on guns. No need for hand guns or automatic weapons for every day use. More training and evaluation before any licences are issued!!
Guns are less popular everywhere than in the US outside of active war zones
I think Switzerland has higher gun ownership, could be wrong. Still makes an interesting comparison with the US.
@@ethelminithat's because all adults under a given age are reservists and required to have access to their service weapon and maintain their competence to use it.
That last bit should be compulsory for anyone looking to own a firearm. Prove you can hit what you're shooting at and not endanger bystanders.
It's called common sense
The main differences are either cultural, or influenced by cultural attitudes and the history of the respective nations. Many in the USA see guns as guarantees of freedom. Many here in the UK see guns as tools of death and oppression which threaten our existence. Gun laws here in the UK are strict because we, the public, want them that way.
The freedom guarantee is just an excuse. Actually everyone in the US lives under the tyranny of gun crime. We all learned to the elements of civilisation, we don't let people drive without a license, without insurance and so on...we have hundreds of limits to our "freedom" - which is what laws are - because one person's freedom can impinge on another person's. The gun people hide behind "freedom from tyranny" because it's the only thing that resembles a defence but it's obviously complete shit.
I don't think enough emphasis was put on the fact that you cannot keep a gun for self protection, also you can't carry a concealed weapon.
You can if you're Gerry Adams of the IRA , he's allowed a concealed pistol for self-defense. Northern Irish gun laws are different to English.
@@grantwilson7561 I wasn't referring to that uncivilised rabble in Ireland.
Military, police, farmers, gaming/hunting, sport.
Something that is often overlooked when people are talking about how hard/easy it is for criminals to get hold of guns in the UK, is the risk in possessing it. Sure, if you are willing to break the law and know the right people you could probably get a gun pretty easily, but then you massively increase the risk of getting caught and the sentence you will face if caught, all for a weapon that in most cases simply isn't needed. Not to mention if anyone reports that you have it, or if you actually use it in a crime, even just as a threat, then the police are going to hunt you down tenfold what they would if you did the same crime with a knife, bat or unarmed.
So although the "bad guys" can get guns, in most cases, it’s simply not worth the risk in the first place. To put it in perspective: Robbery tends to carry a sentence between 18 months and 20 years depending on situation, what was stolen etc. You carry a gun, even if you don't use it, and that immediately becomes a life sentence regardless of the situation.
In the US you get a free gun with a packet of breakfast cereal.
I had a gun licence in UK almost40 yrs ago. I gave it up after3 yrs. I was checked at home 8x in that time. No problems with that I just lost interest in shooting. Bolt ,ammunition and weapon must be stored separately and securely locked away in fixed compartments. Secured to the building etc. you couldn't easily take the storage containers away from the property. It was strict procedures but understandable. Now more so.!!
Even though they are legal in the UK, What you have to remember is unlike the USA the majority of citizens in the UK do NOT want to own a firearm.
If they did, they'd just sit at the bar, complaining about the price of bullets always going up. The only people who are really desperate to own a gun, are inner city kids who listen to too much rap...which all comes from the US anyways. At least, I never heard of any kids in the UK being too into Eastern European rap.
I.O.W., the CULTURAL difference, bingo!
Indeed, this difference applied also prior to 1920, when the only firearm restrictions in the UK were C.C.W. permits.
I wonder what the U.K. total population is that actually thinks that. Considering the amount of U.K. citizens that have went to my range when I worked for a range they typically have a different opinion pre and post shooting. Although a U.K. citizen willing to shoot is likely to be swayed towards more leniency towards gun laws. I don't believe arguments based on feelings should be taken seriously.
Or need one.
I suppose if we lived in America we'd probably want to own one too.
The gun problem is massive over there as you know.
You can be anywhere, school, cinema, shopping. Nowhere is safe from guns there.
Don't speak for me.. I'd have one
If your caught with a pistol in the uk you could be jailed for 20 years
I'm from the North of Ireland and the police her ALWAYS carry a pistol due to some paramilitaries even though most have stood down now. I'm a historical collector but due to my histoy of personal mental health issues i'm not able to own a live gun here and i genuinely dont give a shit and im happy that they take the mental health background heavily into account. I collect deactivated rifles and thats good enough for me.
My son has a shotgun. Whilst returning from a nights shooting he was hit by another car, his car was written off and he needed to walk though quite a large city with his shotgun and ammunition 😂
Fortunately the police were at the scene so walked him home. However the police officer wasn’t allowed to carry the shotgun as he didn’t have a firearms license himself. It was a funny look, my son, with a shotgun slung over his shoulder and a uniformed officer carrying a bag of ammunition and a couple of pheasants and rabbits, through a packed city on a Saturday night!!
Guns have to be stored in a locked cabinet, that is secured to the house (screwed or bolted to a solid wall). ONLY the firearm license holder is permitted to know where the key to the gun safe is. So when my son lived at home only he knew where the was, no one else. The guns must be locked away at all times, unless in use, and police can do spot checks at any given time to check you are following the rules.
there's no restriction on none license holders handling shotguns. As a responsible gun owner, having a car accident was no excuse for walking through a city... plenty of other options
@@hood182ie Was thinking the same.. Why would the officer not arrange a patrol car to take the shotgun owner home. ?
Bear in mind that anyone wanting an Uzi or similar would have to explain why they needed one. I've never known anyone who owns a gun.
Just because it is not outlawed does not mean anyone could ever get one. Would need to be very specific reasons for that type of gun. Not even: I need a gun.
Brit gun owner here. I don't think most British people have any idea about gun law. It's restrictive compared to the US but I'm glad we don't get the gun violence.
In general I agree but UK laws are insanely/stupidly restrictive. I think Polish gun laws are the best in the world - a common-sense balance between freedom and safety. Too bad full-auto guns are no longer available to purchase with my collector's license (I'm hankering for the classic PM-63 RAK) - fortunately for a bit extra they can lock it neatly at semi-auto so that is not a big problem.
As your child is either attending school or soon to be in a school knowing that in 2023 there were 623 deaths by shooting, how do you feel about holding a gun being a right , I will say I am confused by the fact that most gun owners believe that the right is more important , even asking for armed guards too patrol schools rather than restrictive laws to purchase a weapon.
The home visit is to check that you have a secure and thief proof way of gun storage in the home.
I think also to see your home and speak to you in person to check there's nothing that would be a red flag against granting you the cert, eg nothing hanging on the walls that screams nutjob. Even if you've told them you won't be storing your firearms at home you'll still get a home visit normally.
That's wild. That's like 3 constitutional violations here. You guys are just willing to do this? Has the 20th century not tought us anything. The founders were so ahead of their time.
Been here 40 years and lived in some really rough neighborhoods.
Never seen any of these guns in my life.
Then you haven’t lived in rough areas 😂
@@JoeWilson738 erm council estates in London, Manchester and Liverpool not rough?
Where do you live? The bronx? Beirute? The west bank?
Ye I'm sure everyones wandering around Tesco with an Uzi where your from mate.
@@NeilLewis77 I come from a village that you couldn’t even afford to drive though fella, and even I know council estates aren’t rough. Some are sure, but not the ones you’ve lived in.
@@JoeWilson738why would you live in a village he couldn't afford to drive through lol.if yiu feel safe in a council estate 😂
@@chucky2316 Why would I live in a tiny council house when I am able to live in a 9 bed house in the country? Why do you have a shower when you could walk down to a river and have a wash there?
The UK equivalent of the NRA (National Rifle Association of America) is the BASC (British Association for Shooting and Conservation). Membership is about £89 per year for an individual. They can help members who are having problems with the police, licensing and confiscated property.
The UK equivalent of the NRA USA is strictly speaking the NRA UK (or NSRA for smallbore target shooting). The main difference is, that the NRA UK is the main sporting governing body for all types of sports/target shooting and then defers to the specific discipline organisations (like UKPSA, CPSA etc) for their specific sports. From a "more political" view, I agree with your point but there are also the NGO, Countryside Alliance etc. The effectiveness of BASC is certainly a talking point.
Here's a picture of anEnglish (former) gun owner. Me.
I am an elderly lady now, approaching 80, and have held firearms and shotgun licences most of my life. Getting a shotgun licence is easy; getting a firearms licence a little less so, but neither are difficult to get as long as you are 'of good character' and, most importantly, can show a good reason, with evidence, to own a gun. Also, that your GP gives you a clean bill of health - no evidence of depression, psychosis etc. Some GPs refuse to do this (for a few different but IMO, as a retired health professional myself, totally understandable reasons) and there are 'ways round' this (which are, IMO, not 100% satisfactory, but probably as good as can be expected).
Your 'good reason' can be as little as membership of a target-shooting club and wanting your own gun rather than using one of the club's guns. In that case, you might not even need a home inspection if the gun was to be always stored at the club's secure premises and only used there. However, in Great Britain itself, if you give your reason for wanting a gun as 'self protection', a licence will be instantly refused.
I started shooting when I was about 9 years old, with an airgun, and when I showed myself capable with that, was allowed a .22 rifle. In the 1950s, there was bounty on the heads (or rather the tails!) of the invasive grey squirrel (aka 'tree rats'), and I earned £90 in a couple of summers.
Then when the bounty ended, I started shooting rabbits suffering myxi, to put them out of their misery. Fast forward into adulthood and I had a bit of rented moorland (which I later bought) I kept my horses on, and applied for a shotgun licence in my own name to shoot rabbits (recovered from the myxi and made bone-breaking holes) and other vermin. Local farmers trusted me, and would ask me to keep an eye open for sheep-worrying dogs especially during the tourist/hiking season, so I decided a decent rifle was a necessity, after an incident where a shotgun just scared dogs off to come back another day, so applied for a firearms licence.
I held what came to be known as a co-terminous licence (for both shotguns and firearms) for many years. The FO (firearms officer) from the police service would make occasional, unannounced visits to ensure correct storage and other mandated safety precautions were being adhered to.
Obviously regulations changed over the years and hence, so did some of the practices I carried out - the main changes being, I think, increased security of storage for both weapons and ammunition, and the amount of ammunition permitted to be 'held' at home.
Some years ago, for some reason, every time the FO arrived I had visitors and we had several conversations about my (non-existent) witness statement to a (totally fictitious) traffic incident, as a reason for a copper's visit, as I had no intention of revealing to my visitors, where the keys to my gun cabinet were kept. Or even that I had guns in the house! This was not just acceptable, but actually _expected_ of me by the FO. We had a good laugh about it when he finally managed to catch me 'home alone'.
Where gun security is there, if random visitors know where is, and how to access, the gun cabinet?
Once when a new FO arrived, I had to take him upstairs to my bedroom, as I was in the middle of cleaning my guns and that was the only place I could lay them all out and be sure no casual passer-by could see them if they 'just happened' to look in the windows of a little cottage situated directly on the village street. The FO was quite young and looked a bit apprehensive when he was led upstairs by a 50+ yo woman, to her bedroom!
I gave up both driving and shooting when my eyesight and reaction times started to deteriorate, in my early 70s, and a pleasant, trustworthy young man from my village now shoots on my land and keeps his daughter's pony there. When it's tourist/hiking season, he is now the one keeping an eye open for sheep-worrying dogs. He already had a shotgun licence, but when he applied for a firearms licence, I had to write a letter saying that he had my full permission, and indeed expectation, to shoot on my land for both control of vermin and protection of livestock. That was his 'good reason' and his firearms certificate was issued with no trouble.
The other difference is most people in the UK don’t want a gun
People do want them and have them, they just don’t tel you about it.
Yes we do
The British loves guns just as much as the US. Except to get a firearms certificate etc in the UK is almost impossible, also there are alot of restrictions to the type of firearms you can own. Apart from going the legal route alot of criminals have firearms illegally, of course. So the US adage 'if you outlaw firearms, only outlaws will own firearms' is true in the UK.
The firearms offences or injuries due to firearms figures I dont think are correct.
Speak for yourself.
Americans always seem astonished to learn that other countries impose powerful restrictions on gun ownership. I suppose it comes from a lifetime of being told that owning guns is a normal mainstream activity.
meanwhile the USA has Russian Roulette on what state will have a school shooting each week.
The UK i believe the last mass school shooting was in Scotland, Dunblane in 1996
We have 3.6 million people, who own guns in the UK, so get off your high Horse you prat.
Or maybe it's because it's a constitutional right here. We fought for our country againts the most powerful empire at the time and won.
@@S1D3W1ND3R015I'm from England and I agree, you have a constitutional right. How is this not obvious?😂
@@S1D3W1ND3R015 Let's think of a few vietnam, Afghanistan, you definitely won there
The regulations basically allow owning a Colt SSA, it's a revolver and it's muzzle loaded.
And they allow owning a Fat Mac in .950 JDJ. It might be bigger than .22 caliber, but it's single shot.
And they allow what in the US would be considered a machine gun, as long as it's in a .22 rimfire caliber.
I don't understand why the average person would want a gun? We just don't have a gun culture, thank goodness.
Well i dont think of owning guns here in Denmark and i have been in a gun club back in 87. But here there's two kinds of gun. Some lanes only cater for small firearms. My club was for what we call grov pistol. I dont know what you would call that. Rough pistol sounds dumb. But its about low powered revolvers and pistols and the high powered ones. And im guessing thats what we had in the video. So if a revolver is allowed it must be a 22 cal or even lower. I don't think you can have a 357 and a dessert eagle in your home in England. You can here but you have to have bern active in a club for 2 years before you can have them at home. You also need to store them in a slim steel closet that can be locked. All my old schoolmates fathers had these as a lit of them where hunters. But that of course was riffles of diffent sorts. My mums bf has a side by side and over and under and 3 more riffles and shotguns. One is a high powered hunting riffle that he goes around Europe with. Last time was Scotland and England that was a big tour that his hunting lodge had arranged. But all the dads in school was into that. But these weapons can be hung in the closet as is. Only the riffle needs to have the loading mechanism taken of when not in use or for traveling. If its a gun it needs to be disassembled a bit more. So gun itself is either one bit and then the magazine. Or comes in 3-4 parts what we call the pipe and the slide, the breech and maybe the trigger and then a magazine as well. If its a revolver it has a barrel that comes off. In America they call the pipe that barrel. Like im looking down the barel of a gun. But that's a pipe here. Barrels are only a thing in a revolver. So a Colt or something like that.
So you can t really use it for home protection even of it was allowed. It takes a good 10 minuttes to assemble all the parts for most people i would say. I could have had a gun in my club as soon as i became a member but i didnt really see any need for that. I was offered guns by criminals around Denmark. They j8st came up and talked about they could get me a tv a vhs or even guns if i wanted, but om not really into all that. Guns is a tool like anything else, but its not really a tool i need here. I mean what situation am i gonna be in where a gun is needed.? Brake ins dont happen by gun people, they have a screwdriver at best.. Nebwr even heard of a firearms case from thieves. Only gangs have them here and i dont bump into them really. But its also safe to get on a train or bus here.. And that is a whole different case in America. I know 20 year olds thats nebwr been on a train or a bus ever... But that makes sense. Its crazy dangerous using public transport in America. You get on a bus you have a high chance of getting stabbed or shot. They have several shoot outs between passengers and tue bus driver himself over there. They just had a bus driver shooting someone because he feared for his life. 2-3 weeks ago i saw the news report on that. So yeah if i lived in America i would definitely have several firearms. And one on me at all times.. Theres just too much weird stuff going on over there to not have a firearm. And we haven't even mentioned the mountain lions and beaes that turn up at your house in certain states. If you live certian places you might have to deal with a deadly animal several times in a year. Saw some old man on youtube that had at least a weekly vistit from a bear with cubs on his porch. So hell nah, we're not leaving it all to fate if you became a yank. Most stand up acts including the femakes have guns in the house, but thats never about fear of break ins.. They're worried about the bears in their pool. If you can have a black bear in your garden several time a year im getting a shotgun and a sidearm. Call me a weirdo bit i aint taking chances.. 😊
It's the best way to protect yourself against others who would seek to do you harm. It levels the playing field. It's also a deterrent for the state becoming overly authoritarian, a common thread amongst the rise of brutal dictatorships is the disarming of the populace. People think this doesn't apply anymore and they are right but for the wrong reasons. They think the military would just drone strike everyone or something making an armed populace pointless but chances are in that situation the military would fracture with some siding with the populace. We saw how the greatest military in the world struggled against normal people with guns during Vietnam, Afghanistan etc. It very much still is a deterrent, the reason they are right is because an authoritarian government doesn't have to install itself through force, it would be welcomed with open arms because everyone has been conditioned to give up their freedoms for the illusion of safety.
Im America its needed as that's the weapon you're mist likely to meet.. In England its about as likely as meeting a shark in a suit walking down the high street... And in Denamrk its even rarer than that.. We never had gun fights inside a nightclub like Manchester has..
The main thing is most people in UK don't even think about owning a gun lol.
They do they just can't be arsed with the amount of hassle it takes to own one so they just leave it.
@@OG_Account No, its just no one wants a gun.
You'd be surprised how many people in the UK wish they had the right to bear arms.
Gun laws aren't divisive here in the UK. Tbh can't say I've even thought of the topic until you did this video that's how unbothersome they are. Really 6.5 per 100? I seriously doubt that figure, I've never seen a gun heard a gun or met anyone outside of being a farmer who owns a gun and only 1 of the 5 farmers I know has a shotgun.
Exactly, we just don't think about it. The vast majority of Brits have no interest in guns.
That's a lot of rich people and farmers!
If its a livestock farm you can bet you're shiny 2 pound coin shotguns won't be too far away
"1 of the 5 farmers I know has a shotgun."
Now that I have a problem believing as every farmer I've ever known has at least one shotgun and often a rifle too.
@@vinnyganzano1930 Well deal with it, it's a fact, shotguns aren't a necessity on a farm they can't shoot far accurately and a human driving a tractor will scare off foxes just as much as a gun would.
I didn’t even know these laws and I am British, I also don’t know anybody who owns or would even like to own one.
When it says that you have to have a good reason that does not include protection or self defence. No one is allowed to have a firearm for protection and you are not allowed to carry firearms in public places. When it says it is discretionary it doesn't mean an individual Officer can deny you because they are having a bad day. The discretionary part is really how your local Police Chief interprets the guidelines on the "good reasons" part where they are allowed a little flexibility. The main reason why gun ownership is so low in the UK is that, as a population, we generally don't care about guns and we have no need to own one so we just aren't that interested.
ive never seen or heard a gun in my life in the uk, regarldess of what they say in this video, ive never met a person that uses a gun, has a gun, needs a gun, wants a gun. People hate guns in the uk, if you said you went hunting with guns people in the uk would look down on you.
Where do you live im in devon and the westcountry as a whole is very pro hunting and guns farms hunting it all goes hand in hand as a farmer who has cattle or sheep you need a shot gun to protect livestock. Its the same in other rural areas
I'm not sure you'd be looked down on per se, but it definitely would be a weird thing for someone to hear unless they're already part of the hunting community.
Totally agree with you on the "uses/has/needs/wants" thing. If somebody I knew suddenly started saying how they really wanted a gun, or wished they had one, without the context of them specifically wanting to join a gun club or take up clay pigeon shooting for example, that would be a HUGE red flag for me.
The thought of someone near me and my family potentially owning a gun creeps me the hell out. The fact that an entire country's culture seems intrinsically tied to owning firearms (and simultaneously seems complicit with a high level of gun-related violence) just utterly baffles my brain.
I live in a farming area where shotguns are used for shooting vermin so I don’t think you can say people look down on someone for owning a gun There is also a target range in the area so sometimes you can hear gunfire
All guns have to be held in a gun safe as stated by law with struck restrictions on who can have access to them
I'm mainly a bow user myself but there's a rifle and gun club here where I live in Yorkshire (small city now countryside) and honestly I enjoy using firearms when I was in the club, but I don't drive and it is quite expensive for the ammo I would want to use whereas my arrows work till they break 😅
This post does illustrate the difference between rural and urban cultures, in rural communities shotguns are not that rare as they are used for game and pest control and are more accepted, not that you ever see the guns.
The funny thing about hunting in the UK is that a lot of people associate it with rich upper class people and aristocrats (due to history). So its not popular. It falls into the same category as clay pigeon shooting, fox hinting, and polo .
Not true the humble poacher these days is a country gent 😂 you know nothing of the countryside and believe you me poaching occurs. They don't take what doesn't belong to them like sheep or beef
No, not due to history. Due to relentless propaganda. Up until the first half of the 20th century every different trade of working man in the UK used to have their own shooting clubs all across the country.
All these rules become irrelevant if you think about the number of homicides per million pop. The 1 in 6 owning guns is probably down to farmers with a shot gun - The last sratement is most important . People in the UK, mostly, are not interested in owning a gun.
Because it's been beaten out of us. A hundred years ago just about every trade had its own rifle club. It wasn't that uncommon even fifty years ago.
The vetting process is ongoing throughout your gun ownership, when the Police visit they check (1) The firearms that you own are the correct serial number and calibre listed on your licence (2) The amount of ammunition you have does not exceed your quota listed on your licence (3) The gun safes/storage is secured correctly to the wall (4) The storage meets the correct standards (5) Your membership to a firearms club, checked with the club (active member, conduct on the range) (6) Medical records, especially regarding mental health (7) Your general persona during the visit (face to face to get a read on you). (8) Your criminal record, including if you have been reported or suspected of domestic violence. I hope this gives a better picture for all and makes UK residents feel a bit more comfortable 😊
We occasionally have gun amnesty's where owners of illegal weapons can take them to a designated place & hand them in. They wont be asked any questions or be arrested. They take them, leave them, then walk away.
Not quite true. Your name and details are taken. If the guns you hand in are then linked to a crime (for example a prior murder), you will be questioned as a suspect.
We make it so difficult to get weapons for the simple reason that we don’t want to end up like you guys in the USA.
What up to 5 million people being saved by guns....yes how terrible.
According to the Home Office there are approximately 1 million illegal firearms in circulation among the criminal fraternity including terrorist sleeper cells which pose a threat to the population of this country.
Its really not difficult, for firearms a little more reason need but a shotgun license is simply a application form and a medical form and then wait. If anything its way to easy
@@deathsmessengertell that to dead kids mate.
@lordwellingtonthethird8486 I can't speak to the dead, but I know the 5 million that were saved are very greatful. Considering you care so much for 30-ish kids, you don't care if we add another 5 million victims to that list.
Im in the UK. The only person I now personally who owns a gun, other than farmers, is my dad's friend who goes hunting. Once the police came to his house because there had been an incident nearby and they were checking registered weapons in the area. They just checked that his gun was in his cabinet and hadnt been used recently, and then left.
This was a very brief look into UK gun laws. Pistols were mostly banned after the Dunblaine Massacre which might be worth reacting-to. Everyone in the UK shudders every time we hear of yet another mass-shooting in the US. Here, ANY gun crime is headline news. Owning a firearm without a license here is a prison offense and any other crime in which you involve a gun (even if legally owned) carries MUCH higher sentences automatically.
A shotgun is not considered a firearm and is a right to own providing you have somewhere safe to store it and a legitimate reason to own one (eg own land in the countryside)
So the police have to have a good reason to stop you owning one providing you aren't a criminal, crazy, or don't have somewhere to store it securely.
A firearm is all the other guns and it is not a right, so the background checks etc are harder to pass. Once you have a firearms license, you can own any firearm, but again it does depend on having a legitimate reason for owning that firearm: Hunting, membership of a gun-range, etc.
The police visit to your home is to ensure that you have genuinely secure storage; a proper metal, locked gun cabinet that is secured to a strong wall or floor and that the home itself is well secured.
So if you wanted a long-barreled or muzzle-loading pistol for example, you might need to show that you regularly do historical re-enactment or shoot at a private club.
Ammunition is as restricted as the firearm itself: you simply can't get it without the appropriate license.
Air-guns are restricted to 12ft-lbs of pressure and air pistols are half that, and anyone can own it. They are fine for shooting very small game or vermin or target-shooting.
You're quite right that illegal guns don't easily make it into the UK. Because of the rarity and resitictions, illegal guns are also very expensive, getting ammunition is hard, owning one is immediately a heavy prison sentence before you do anything with it and only one person has to open their mouth about it and you're done. Plus, if the police learn of it they willl send firearms trained officers and those guys are VERRRRRRRY well trained indeed. If a gun is involved in a crime here (even mere ownsership of one) then the guys you deal-with are like SWAT. You aren't going to win. As a result, the vast majority of criminals don't risk having firearms even if they have access and are rich. There are exceptions of course.
Guns are legal in Britain but the main difference is we didn’t make a culture out of guns like America, we actually tried to make it the opposite after the school shooting. No NRA in politics, no gun adverts at all ever. It’s not pushed anywhere. And we didn’t politicise it which is what has made people have such strong feelings about being allowed guns in America. They’ve somehow made people think it’s akin to freedom.
I guess I also just trust the British government isn’t going to turn into China to the point I need guns to fight off my own government. In fact, if they did then my guns would do nothing anyway compared to the governments army and police, which I assume would be the same in America anyway?
And if the public doesn’t have guns I don’t need guns to protect against gun attacks either. But difference’s are mainly just the culture, and the political bribes in America with the NRA etc.
Jesus christ yet _another_ person mindlessly parroting "I don't need a gun for self defence if the attacker doesn't have a gun". Do you people not even think about that for a second? How is a small woman, a frail old man, a guy in a wheelchair etc... how are they supposed to defend themselves from a fit guy in his early 20s?
@@WJS774 what and you think the only option is a gun??
In the UK clay pigeon shooting is quite a popular sport. there are lots of clay grounds (some well equipped clubs, some are basically farmers putting land into leisure pursuits) It’s the reason why a lot of people have a shotgun. Everyone I know who shoots rifles is former military personnel, there aren’t very many civilian ranges in England so it’s not a widespread sport. We do not have any large wild animals which are a threat to humans in the UK, there are no bears, wolves, etc, so we have no need for protection and we don’t hunt for food (some deer/venison is taken that way but that’s a specialist job, game shooting means birds and there is some of that but it’s not a regular part of the British diet).
Very glad to have the laws we do in the UK. Wouldn't even consider visiting the US because of there's, I would feel unsafe.
Why do people think just because it's possible to legally have these, That it's easy to get them, That's the difference between The US and UK, Not necessarily the legality. But rather the controls on them..
Exactly. It is "technically" legal, but the hoops are enormous. I have no history of shooting, no farming background and don't work in pest control. I have zero chance of getting a permit, as I couldn't give good reason.
I have never seen a gun in my life. I'm 77.
I haven't seen one for 17 minutes.
Most people haven't. Thankfully.
All guns should be re cycled into bicycle clips😂
They come to the property to ensure you have a secure place to keep it, ie, a safe or gun locker
Imagine sitting opposite a policeman trying to explain why you "NEED” an Uzi submachine gun, do you think you could come up with a reason that made sense to your local police? Based on a lack of deadly animals in the UK and home security is NOT a valid request.
Armourer for the film industry springs to mind but I imagine they are very few and far between.
Also if your gun club allows them to be fired on their ranges they would probably give a different sense of enjoyment to a single shot / semi automatic weapon.
@@nigelanscombe8658 I suspect that would be a corporate registration, why would an individual want or need an Uzi?
@@daveofyorkshire301 it might depend how many people in your company. It’s conceivable you might possess, rent out and controls the weapons.
You wondered if anyone could come up with an idea. Well, there’s a hypothetical. 🤷🏻♂️