Published: 14.07.08

The country's most quoted academic expert on guns, university lecturer Professor Peter Squires, has provided analysis for the major Channel 4 series, Disarming Britain.

A Street Weapons Commission, chaired by Cherie Booth, investigated the problem of gun and knife crime on Britain's streets, and attempted to find out why so many young people now routinely carry guns and knives as part of the series.

Peter brought his expertise in criminology and public policy to the commission panel by helping to develop profiles of the problems encountered in five cities visited by the commission including London, Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and Glasgow.

It is hoped the evidence taken from interested parties, including members of the public, will contain practical ideas to tackle the problem of weapons on our streets for the future.

This week Peter also completed a report alongside colleagues at the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies (CCJS), King’s College, London, about the state of British gun crime and the government’s response.

In the report Peter argues that most of the problems associated with the illegal use of firearms require social and economic rather than criminal justice solutions and that much of the gun crime on Britain's streets goes unreported.

Peter explains: “This report examines what we do and don’t know about gun crime to establish a basis from which we can start asking the right questions and developing effective policies. It demonstrates that the use of guns is a product of conflict and violence in deprived and excluded communities and once we understand that we can start addressing the causes and not just the symptoms.”

The report, ‘Gun Crime’ A review of evidence and policy, provides a detailed analysis of recent research and official data. It highlights extensive gaps in existing knowledge and the inadequacy of policies based on according to Peter ”an at best partial understanding of the issues”.

The main findings published in the report include:

• Use of firearms in crime in England and Wales represents less than 0.5 per cent of all police-recorded crime and if crime committed with air weapons is excluded, it accounts for 0.2 per cent of recorded crime.
• Latest figures show there has been a 13 per cent year on year fall. But, since 1998-1999, firearm crimes have increased by one third and there has been an 85 per cent increase in crimes excluding air weapons.
• Firearms were used in 59 homicides in 2006-2007 constituting eight per cent of all homicides that year and representing an 18 per cent increase on the previous year. Although in 2005-2006 the lowest firearm homicide total for almost a decade was recorded.
• The available research shows that children, young people, those living in deprived areas and members of black and minority ethnic communities are more likely to be the victims and to be convicted of firearm offences.

A copy of the report, ‘Gun crime’ A review of evidence and policy, by Peter Squires with Roger Grimshaw and Enver Solomon is available at http://www.crimeandjustice.org.uk/guncrime.html. 

More information can be found from Channel 4 on the Street Weapons Commission and the Disarming Britain season.