- Latest available (Revised)
- Original (As enacted)
Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997
You are here:
- UK Public General Acts
- 1997 c. 5
- Part I
- General prohibition of small...
What Version
Advanced Features
- Show Geographical Extent(e.g. England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland)
- Show Timeline of Changes
Opening Options
More Resources
Changes over time for: Cross Heading: General prohibition of small firearms etc.
Alternative versions:
Changes to legislation:
There are currently no known outstanding effects for the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997, Cross Heading: General prohibition of small firearms etc..
Changes to Legislation
Revised legislation carried on this site may not be fully up to date. At the current time any known changes or effects made by subsequent legislation have been applied to the text of the legislation you are viewing by the editorial team. Please see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ for details regarding the timescales for which new effects are identified and recorded on this site.
General prohibition of small firearms etc.E+W+S
1 Extension of s.5 of the 1968 Act to prohibit certain small firearms etc.E+W+S
(1)Section 5 of the M1Firearms Act 1968 (referred to in this Act as “the 1968 Act”) shall have effect with the following amendments.
(2)In subsection (1) (which describes weapons which are prohibited by section 5), after paragraph (ab) there shall be inserted the following paragraph—
“(aba)any firearm which either has a barrel less than 30 centimetres in length or is less than 60 centimetres in length overall, other than an air weapon, a small-calibre pistol, a muzzle-loading gun or a firearm designed as signalling apparatus;”.
(3)In paragraph (ab) (self-loading or pump-action rifles) of that subsection, for the word “rifle” there shall be substituted the words “ rifled gun ”.
(4)In paragraph (ac) (self-loading and pump-action smooth-bore guns) after the word “not” there shall be inserted the words “ an air weapon or ”.
(5)In paragraph (ad) (smooth-bore revolver guns), for the words from “loaded” to the end there shall be substituted the words “ a muzzle-loading gun ”.
(6)After subsection (7) there shall be inserted the following subsections—
“(8)For the purposes of subsection (1)(aba) and (ac) above, any detachable, folding, retractable or other movable butt-stock shall be disregarded in measuring the length of any firearm.
(9)Any reference in this section to a muzzle-loading gun is a reference to a gun which is designed to be loaded at the muzzle end of the barrel or chamber with a loose charge and a separate ball (or other missile).”
(7)The general prohibition by section 5 of the 1968 Act of firearms falling within subsection (1)(aba) of that section is subject to the special exemptions in sections 2 to 8 below.
[F1(7A)In sections 2 to 7 below any reference to subsection (1)(aba) of section 5 of the 1968 Act shall include a reference to subsection (2A) of that section as it applies in relation to a firearm specified in subsection (1)(aba) of that section.
(7B)In section 8 below the reference to subsection (1)(aba), (b) or (c) of section 5 of the 1968 Act shall include a reference to subsection (2A) of that section as it applies in relation to any weapon or ammunition specified in subsection (1)(aba), (b) or (c) of that section.]
(8)In sections 2 to 8 below any reference to a firearm certificate shall include a reference to a visitor’s firearm permit.
F2(9). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Textual Amendments
F1S. 1(7A)(7B) inserted (14.7.2014) by Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 (c. 12), ss. 108(9), 185(1) (with ss. 21, 33, 42, 58, 75, 93); S.I. 2014/949, art. 6(a)
F2S. 1(9) repealed (1.2.1998) by 1997 c. 64, s. 2(7), Sch.; S.I.1997/3114, arts. 4, 5, Sch. Pt. II
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C1S. 1(3) excluded (10.6.1997) by S.I. 1997/1535, arts. 3(b), 5, Sch. Pt. I
Commencement Information
I1S. 1 wholly in force at 1.7.1997; s. 1 not in force at Royal Assent see s. 53(3)(4); s. 1 in force at 1.7.1997 by S.I. 1997/1535, art. 3(b), Sch. Pt. I (with effect as mentioned in arts. 4, 4A (as amended by S.I. 1997/1536, art. 2) of the commencing Act)
Marginal Citations
Options/Help
Print Options
PrintThe Whole Act
PrintThe Whole Part
PrintThis Cross Heading only
Legislation is available in different versions:
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
See additional information alongside the content
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Opening Options
Different options to open legislation in order to view more content on screen at once
More Resources
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
- the original print PDF of the as enacted version that was used for the print copy
- lists of changes made by and/or affecting this legislation item
- confers power and blanket amendment details
- all formats of all associated documents
- correction slips
- links to related legislation and further information resources
Timeline of Changes
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
More Resources
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
- the original print PDF of the as enacted version that was used for the print copy
- correction slips
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including:
- lists of changes made by and/or affecting this legislation item
- confers power and blanket amendment details
- all formats of all associated documents
- links to related legislation and further information resources
All content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. This site additionally contains content derived from EUR-Lex, reused under the terms of the Commission Decision 2011/833/EU on the reuse of documents from the EU institutions. For more information see the EUR-Lex public statement on re-use.