Quarterly Update

The Home Office produces Quarterly Updates on Crime in England and Wales.  These include data on firearms offences (excluding airguns).

For "A Guide to and Review of Home Office Gun Crime Statistics" see Hales (2006)

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The most recent information was published in April 2008 and covered the Year to December 2007.  The data show an increase in the Total Number of Offences compared with the same period in 2006, though the number of Fatal Injuries and the number of Serious Injuries were both down.  The Total number of Offences, the number of Serious Injuries, the number of Slight Injuries, the number of offences involving Handguns, Shotguns and Imitation Guns were all lower than they were for the Year to September 2006.

There were a provisional 9967 firearm offences, an increase of 4 per cent from 2006

Handguns were used in 4,163 offences, a decrease of 1 per cent from 2005/06

Shotguns were used in 609 offences, an increase of 2 per cent from 2005/06

Imitation weapons were used in 2,663 offences, an increase of 6 per cent from 2005/06.

Firearms caused 49 Fatal Injuries, 7 less than in the previous year.  The number of offences that resulted in Serious Injury decreased by 16% to 355 while the number of Slight Injuries increased by 5% to 2,644.  Nearly 70% of firearm offences involved no physical injury, although they were 5,282 instances in which they were used to Threaten (5 percent more than in 2006).

See Comment

Weapon type

Year to

September 2006

 Year to

September 2007

% change
       
Shotgun  

600

609
+2
Handgun
4213
4163
-1
Imitation
2502
2663
+6

Rifle

            62

              77

      +24

Unidentified

          1262

          1346

      +7

Other
955

1108

+16

Total

9594

9967

+4

Other includes CS gas, disguised firearms, machine guns, pepper spray, stun guns and other specified weapons (majority are paintball guns)

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> See Quarterly Update to January 2007 - December 2007 - Statistical Bulletin 04/08

> See Quarterly Update to September 2007 - January 2008 - Statistical Bulletin 01/08

> See Quarterly Update to June 2007 - October 2007 - Statistical Bulletin 16/07

> See Crime in England and Wales 2006/07 - July 2007 (pp.63-64) - Statistical Bulletin 11/07

> See Quarterly Update to December 2006 - April 2007 - Statistical Bulletin 07/07

> See Quarterly Update to September 2006 - January 2007- Statistical Bulletin 01/07

 

> See the Annual Statistics for England and Wales