England has had gun control laws since the 16th century. Perhaps, that's why it has one of the lowest rates of gun homicides in the world with 0.22 recorded intentional homicides committed with a firearm per 100,000 inhabitants compared to the United States' 9.0 and to Germany's 1.1. Furthermore, guns are not used very often in the commission of crimes, only 11,226 cases in England and Wales in 2010/2011 and that includes airguns and imitation guns.
Not all guns are banned, only fully automatic (submachine-guns, etc.) and self-loading (semi-automatic) weapons of a calibre larger than .22 are totally banned, pistols are limited to .22 calibre in short barrel, while calibres up to .357 magnum are allowed in long barrel pistols. Everything else is okay, as long as you have a good reason, such as target shooting, hunting, and historic and black powder weapons, but not self-defense. But, you have to get a license from the police and renew it every five years.
Here is the process of getting a license: positive verification of identity, two referees of verifiable good character who have known the applicant for at least two years (and who may themselves be interviewed and/or investigated as part of the certification), approval of the application by the applicant's own family doctor, an inspection of the premises and cabinet where firearms will be kept and a face-to-face interview by a Firearms Enquiry Officer (FEO). A thorough background check of the applicant is then made by Special Branch on behalf of the firearms licensing department. Only when all these stages have been satisfactorily completed will a license be issued. There are also regulations as to where the weapon can be stored.
Why would any rational person not be willing to undergo this process should they want to do some target shooting? However, I doubt that we would adopt such a rational process. Our constitution gives us the right to bear arms and in some states carry a concealed weapon into a school. That's the American way!
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