LegalizeThe Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 (Commencement) (No. 2) Order 1997
Made: 10th June 1997
In exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 53(3) and (4) of the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997[^f00001], I hereby make the following Order:
1
This Order may be cited as the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 (Commencement) (No. 2) Order 1997.
2
In this Order “the 1968 Act” means the Firearms Act 1968[^f00002] and “the 1997 Act”means the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997.
3
Subject to the provisions of this Order—
- (a) sections 15 (surrender of prohibited small firearms and ammunition) and 51 (power to make transitional, consequential etc. provisions) of the 1997 Act shall come into force on 10th June 1997;
- (b) the provisions of the 1997 Act specified in Part I of the Schedule to this Order shall come into force on 1st July 1997, and
- (c) the provisions of the 1997 Act specified in Part II of that Schedule shall come into force on 1st October 1997.
4
Sections 1(2) (prohibition of certain small firearms) and 9 (prohibition of expanding ammunition) of the 1997 Act shall not have effect until 1st October 1997 in relation to the possession, sale or transfer of a firearm or ammunition by a person who, immediately before 1st July 1997,
- (a) has the firearm or ammunition in his possession by virtue of a firearm certificate or a visitor’s firearm permit;
- (b) has the firearm or ammunition in his possession by virtue of a permit issued under section 7 of the 1968 Act, or
- (c) has the firearm in his possession by virtue of being a registered firearms dealer.
5
Section 1(3) of the 1997 Act (amendment of prohibition of self-loading and pump-action rifles) shall not have effect in relation to weapons prohibited by section 5(1)(aba) of the 1968 Act[^f00003].
6
Section 41 of the 1997 Act (appeals) shall not have effect in relation to a decision made by a chief officer of police before 1st July 1997.
SCHEDULE
PART I — PROVISIONS OF THE 1997 ACT COMING INTO FORCE ON 1ST JULY 1997
| Provision of the Act | Subject matter of provisions |
|---|---|
| Section 1 | Extension of s.5 of the Firearms Act 1968 to prohibit certain small firearms etc. |
| Section 2 | Exemption for slaughtering instruments |
| Section 3 | Exemption for firearms used for humane killing of animals |
| Section 4 | Exemption for shot pistols used for shooting vermin |
| Section 5 | Exemption for races at athletic meetings |
| Section 6 | Exemption for trophies of war |
| Section 7 | Exemption for firearms of historic interest |
| Section 8 | Exemption for weapons and ammunition used for treating animals |
| Section 9 | General prohibition of expanding ammunition etc. |
| Section 10 | Expanding ammunition etc.; exemptions from prohibition |
| Section 16 (insofar as it is notalready in force) | Payments in respect of prohibited small firearms and ammunition |
| Section 17 (insofar as it is not already in force) | Payments in respect of ancillary equipment |
| Section 18 (insofar as it is not already in force) | Parliamentary control of compensation schemes |
| Section 37 | Applications for certificates and referees |
| Section 38 | Grant of firearm certificates |
| Section 40 | Revocation of certificates |
| Section 41 | Appeals |
| Section 42 | Authorised dealing with firearms by registered firearms dealers |
| Section 43 | Power of search with warrant |
| Section 47 | Museums eligible for a museum firearms licence |
| Section 48 | Firearms powered by compressed carbon dioxide |
| Section 49 | Financial provisions |
| Section 50 | Interpretation and supplementary provisions |
| Section 52 (insofar as it relates to the provisions of Schedules 2 and 3 mentioned immediately below) | Minor and consequential amendments and repeals |
| In Schedule 2— paragraphs 1, 2, 4, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 | Consequential and minor amendment |
| In Schedule 3— the entries relating to sections 5, 5A, 23 and 28 of the Firearms Act 1968, the entries relating to sections 9, 10 and 12 of the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 and the entry relating to the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1992 | Repeals |
PART II — PROVISIONS OF THE 1997 ACT COMING INTO FORCE ON 1ST OCTOBER 1997
| Provisions of the Act | Subject matter of provisions |
|---|---|
| Section 32 | Transfers of firearms etc. to be in person |
| Section 33 | Notification of transfers including firearms |
| Section 34 | Notification of de-activation, destruction or loss of firearms etc. |
| Section 35 | Notification of events taking place outside Great Britain involving firearms etc. |
| Section 36 | Penalty for offences under sections 32 to 35 |
| Section 39 | Register of holders of shotgun and firearm certificates |
| Section 44 | Firearm certificates for certain firearms used for target shooting: special conditions |
| Section 45 | Approved rifle clubs and muzzle-loading pistol clubs |
| Section 52 (insofar as it relates to the provisions of Schedules 2 and 3 mentioned below) | Minor and consequential amendments and repeals |
| In Schedule 2— paragraphs 3, 5 and 6 | Consequential and minor amendments |
| In Schedule 3— the entries relating to sections 42 and 54 of, and Schedule 6 to, the Firearms Act 1968, and the entry relating to section 4 of the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 | Repeals |
Signed
Jack Straw — One of Her Majesty’s Principal Secretaries of State — 10th June 1997
Explanatory note
(This note is not part of the Order)
This Order brings into force the provisions of the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997, subject to the transitional provisions and savings made by the Order and, in the case of sections 16, 17 and 18, insofar as they are not already in force. (Sections 16, 17 and 18 of the 1997 Act were brought into force on 17th March 1997 by the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 (Commencement) (No. 1) Order 1997 (S.I. 1997/1076) for the purposes only of making a compensation scheme.) References in this note to sections are references to sections of the 1997 Act.
Section 15 (which enables the Secretary of State to make arrangements for the orderly surrender of firearms) and section 51 (which enables him to make other transitional, consequential and saving provisions) are brought into force on 10th June. The provisions specified in Part I of the Schedule to this Order are brought into force on 1st July 1997, and the provisions specified in Part II of that Schedule are brought into force on 1st October 1997.
Article 4 provides that section 1(2) (whose effect is to prohibit certain small firearms) and section 9 (which prohibits expanding ammunition) are not to have effect until 1st October 1997 in relation to the possession, sale or transfer of such firearms or ammunition by virtue of a firearm certificate, police permit, or, in the case of a firearm, registration as a firearms dealer.
Article 5 provides that section 1(3) (which is an amendment to clarify the existing prohibition of pump-action and self-loading rifles) does not have effect so as to prohibit small firearms which will already be prohibited by virtue of section 1(2).
Article 6 provides that the new provisions dealing with appeals against decisions of chief officers, as substituted by section 41, are not to have effect in relation to such decisions made before 1st July 1997.
Footnotes
[^f00001]: 1997 c. 5.
[^f00002]: 1968 c. 27.
[^f00003]: Section 5(1)(aba) of the 1968 Act was inserted by section 1(2) of the 1997 Act.
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