AFTE Store - The Criminal Reactivation of Firearms The British Experience

Following the imposition of strict firearms legislation in Britain in 1988, several classes of arms were placed in the prohibited category. A scheme was introduced to allow the unrestricted possession and transfer of the newly prohibited arms and other firearms and prohibited weapons, if deactivated to a standard acceptable to the Secretary of State. Approved standards for firearm deactivation were drawn up in 1989, along with an inspection service and marking by the two Gun Barrel Proof Houses. Many of these deactivated arms were subsequently restored to a working condition, and used in serious crime. More rigorous deactivation standards were introduced in 1995 to help counter this perceived threat, particularly in respect to handguns and full-automatic weapons.