Most Britons believe there should be greater restrictions or a total ban on gun ownership

Key takeaways

  • 56% of Britons believe there should be either greater restrictions or a complete ban on civilian gun ownership
  • A further 35% of the public feel current rules on gun ownership are about right
  • Only 4% of the public believe existing gun laws in the UK are too tight and should be relaxed
  • Labour voters are the most likely to favour tighter restrictions on gun ownership

30 years ago, a man open fired on a PE class at an infant school in the Scottish town of Dunblane, killing 16 young children, their teacher, and injuring 15 others. The tragedy led to demands for a swift tightening of guns laws in Britain, with the private ownership of most handguns banned in 1997.

Today, the UK has one of the lowest rates of gun crime anywhere in the world, with little appetite for any loosening of firearms rules.

A clear majority of the public (56%) in fact believe there should be greater restrictions on gun ownership, including 28% who would favour a complete ban on civilians owning firearms. A further 35% think that current restrictions are about right, leaving only a tiny proportion (4%) who believe existing rules are too tight and should be relaxed.

Labour voters are the most likely to favour stricter gun laws, with 63% wanting either tighter rules or an outright ban, relative to 52-53% of Conservative, Lib Dem and Green voters and 45% of Reform UK voters, who are the most likely to believe current restrictions are too tight and should be relaxed, with one in eight (13%) doing so.

YouGov have previously asked this question in the aftermath of the Cumbria shootings in 2010 and the Plymouth shooting in 2021. In both cases, a greater proportion of Britons favoured a tightening of the law or even outright ban on gun ownership (69% in 2010 and 76% in 2021), with fewer (17-23%) feeling that existing restrictions were adequate.

While this is potentially down to a reaction against the then recent tragedies, the proportion favouring a relaxation of the law has remained consistently low (3-4%) whether or not there has been a shooting in the news.

See the full results here

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