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2. Main Points
There have been a number of changes in recording practices in recent years, along with a clarification of the scope of the firearms return. (See Annex 5.13-5.17) The main changes to the return are:
- From 2005-06, forces agreed to identify weapons whenever possible, based on evidence such as type of damage caused even if the weapon was not recovered. As expected this has led to an increase in the identified firearms categories and a decrease in the number of unidentified firearms. ( Table 3)
- From 2006-07, forces agreed to include incidents involving air weapons where no injury or damage was caused. These incidents were excluded in previous years. This change would be expected to increase both the total number of offences of reckless conduct with a firearm and the total number of offences involving air weapons. ( Table 1 and Table 3)
These changes should be taken into account when considering the following main points:
- In 2007-08 the Scottish police recorded 1,125 offences in which a firearm was alleged to have been used, a decrease of 11 per cent from the total of 1,261 recorded in 2006-07. ( Table 1)
- There was a small decrease in the number of offences of reckless conduct with a firearm, from 293 in 2006-07 to 288 in 2007-08 with the figure remaining higher than that recorded in 2005-06 and earlier. This is a direct result of the change to recording practices noted above. The number of 'other crimes and offences' increased from 117 in 2005-06 to 216 in 2006-07 and 230 in 2007-08. It is thought that at least part of this increase is due to a clarification in the scope of the firearms offences return (See Annex 5.15-5.17). ( Table 1)
- The number of vandalism offences fell 41 per cent, from 204 in 2006-07 to 121 in 2007-08. The number of minor assaults was 199 in 2007-08, almost unchanged from 200 in 2006-07. ( Table 1)
- The use of firearms in criminal activity continued to constitute only a small proportion of all offences recorded by the police in 2007-08; 3 per cent of recorded homicides (4 offences), 5 per cent of recorded attempted murders (33 offences), and 2 per cent of recorded robberies (61 offences). In each of the remaining three categories, less than 0.7 per cent of offences involved the alleged use of a firearm. ( Table 2)
- Air weapons accounted for 50 per cent (567) of all offences involving firearms in 2007-08, compared to 54 per cent (684) in 2006-07. ( Table 3)
- The number of offences in which a firearm was fired and killed or caused injury to a person decreased, from 248 in 2006-07 to 211 in 2007-08. ( Table 5)
- Of the 211 main victims injured in recorded offences in which a firearm was fired, 154 (73 per cent) were male and 56 (27 per cent) were female. There was 1 offence in which a police officer was shot causing injury. Forty six main victims (22 per cent) were aged between 11-15 years of age and 38 victims (18 per cent) were aged 10 years or under. ( Table 10)
- In 2007-08, 64 per cent of all offences in which a firearm was alleged to have been used were cleared up, an increase from 58 per cent cleared up in 2006-07. ( Table 11)
- The Strathclyde police force area, which contained 43 per cent of the estimated population in Scotland in 2007, accounted for 52 per cent (580) of all offences in which a firearm was alleged to have been used in 2007-08. ( Table 13)
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