Children issued with shotgun licences

Figures obtained from 51 forces across the UK show that certificates were issued to 13 children under the age of 10 between 2008 and 2010.

More than 7,000 certificates were issued to under-18s, with licence-holders including a seven-year-old in Gloucestershire and eight-year-olds in Cumbria and West Mercia.

The Government is reviewing the country’s gun laws after the Commons home affairs select committee described them as a “complex and confused” mess in December.

Police chiefs have called for an “absolute minimum age” for shooting with firearms and shotguns, set at 10 years old.

West Mercia Police said it had issued a shotgun certificate to an eight-year-old clay pigeon shooter who was supervised by his father.

Most under-18s with certificates used shotguns for sport and some were in training to compete in the 2012 Olympics, the force added.

Christopher Graffius, of the British Association for Shooting and Conservation, said: “The law still prohibits a person of this age from owning or buying a shotgun or using one without supervision.

“It is important to remember that you cannot buy so much as an airgun pellet in this country until you are 18.

“An applicant for a shotgun certificate is subject to the same procedure whatever their age which includes police vetting, face-to-face interviews and a home security check.”

Yorkshire Post research has found that almost 600,000 people in England and Wales have the right to carry guns, but police do not keep a database showing how many of them have criminal records.

A flaw in police recording systems means that checking each certificate individually is the only way officers can find the number of gun-owners who have broken the law.

The region’s largest force, West Yorkshire Police, said it would take about 1,000 hours to retrieve all the information.