Clause 26 - Age limits for purchase etc. of air weapons
Violent Crime Reduction Bill
10:45 am
Hazel Blears (Minister of State (Policing, Security and Community Safety), Home Office; Salford, Labour)
The clause is just one of a number of measures aimed at addressing the mischief of the misuse of air weapons. We do not say that increasing the age from 17 to 18 will of itself solve the problem, but it is important. I am sure that the hon. Member for Huntingdon would acknowledge the need for the law to encompass a range of measures and police powers to make our communities as safe as they can be.
The misuse of air weapons is a significant problem. It causes huge distress to the public. In an earlier discussion about equivalence I think it was my hon. Friend the Member for Brent, South who talked about the fact that people who misuse air weapons could terrify people, particularly older people, in their properties and that it was not equivalent to being gently reprimanded with a cricket bat—I think that was what she said—or a slingshot, or anything analogous.
In 2003–04 air weapons were used in 13,756 crimes, so the problem is not one of low-level behaviour. Those figures show an increase of 59 per cent. over the last seven or eight years. There were 2,400 cases of injury, including 156 cases of serious injury. Hon. Members must be aware that we are trying to deal with a significant and serious problem.
The hon. Member for Huntingdon is right. We do need to enforce existing laws, but, as a responsible Government, we must also identify problems and determine what measures are appropriate to deal with them.