DUP spokesperson for environment, food and rural affairs, MP Carla Lockhart, has reassured Northern Ireland’s (NI) 53,000 gun holders that the new firearms licensing fees, announced by the home office earlier this week, will not apply to NI.
The new price hikes, which vary between 111% and 157% and are due to come into effect in the rest of the UK on February 5, 2025, will see the cost of shotgun licences rise by 144%, from £79.50 to £194.
The move has angered landowners and the Countryside Alliance who have described it as a ‘gun tax’, which, according to the latter, was delivered without adequate stakeholder consultation and public engagement.
Westminster has stated that the changes are necessary to provide “more effective and efficient firearms licensing controls”, enabling police to safeguard the public from the misuse of licensed firearms and to provide “a professional service to applicants”.
The new Labour government claimed that the previous firearm licensing fees structure, last revised in 2015, was now outdated and did not constitute an accurate reflection of the current costs associated with administrating gun certificates.
As a result, the government claimed police forces across the UK were reportedly being forced to dip into additional allocated budgets to subsidise the service.
Licence type
Current fee
New ‘full cost recovery’ fee
% increase
Firearms certificate grant
£88
£198
125%
Firearms certificate renewal
£62
£131
111%
Shotgun certificate grant
£79.50
£194
144%
Shotgun certificate renewal
£49
£126
157%
However, MP Lockhart has challenged this statement: “This is another element of the government’s plans to recoup money for its coffers.
“They are already removing tax relief on double-cab pick-ups and planning to introduce higher vehicle tax, fertiliser tax and take away historic business property and inheritance tax relief.”
The DUP MP for Upper Bann has reportedly written to the justice minister, Shabana Mahmood and agriculture minister, Daniel Zeichner, for written confirmation that NI will remain exempt from the prospective new fee structure.
“The PSNI’s Firearms and Explosive Branch has responded to my enquiry for clarification on the issue. Firearms licensing in Northern Ireland is tightly regulated and comes under the remit of the devolved Stormont Assembly,” Lockhart said.
“I have written to the justice minister and the agriculture minister, seeking their reassurances that this astronomical price rise will remain firmly off the agenda for Northern Ireland.
“Farmers are already facing crippling economic pressure. The last thing they need is a hike in licensing fees just for the privilege of holding a firearm for use in the day-to-day running of their farm business,” Lockhart added.
According to the government, 52,843 farmers in England, Wales and Scotland will be affected by the new changes, which are expected to have a significant impact on rural landowners.
