82.This section allows air weapon club approvals to be made co-terminous with a rifle club approval issued by the Scottish Ministers under section 15 of the 1988 Act. This allows for both approvals to be due for renewal at the same time, minimising the workload for the applicant and the Chief Constable. Regulations under section 35 are expected to make provision for a proportionately lowered fee where such air weapon club approvals are granted or renewed for significantly shorter duration. This section does not affect the duration of rifle club approvals.
83.Subsections (1) and (2) allow an air weapon club which already holds a valid rifle club approval to request that the expiry date on an air weapon club approval – if granted or renewed – matches the expiry date on their existing rifle club approval. Because the standard duration for rifle and air weapon club approvals are both set at six years, an air weapon club approval issued in this way will necessarily have a shorter than normal duration when it is first granted.
84.Subsections (3) and (4) allow a club that already holds a live air weapon club approval to request that that approval be renewed before it has run its full six year lifespan, and re-issued on the same date that a new or renewed rifle club approval is granted, so that the expiry dates on both approvals are aligned. This will necessarily mean that the air weapon club approval which was originally paid for on a six year basis will not have lasted for its full duration.
85.References in this section to “rifle club approvals” include clubs approved for the use of small-bore rifles, full-bore rifles and/ or muzzle-loading pistols, all of which are approved under section 15 of the 1988 Act.