Sajid Javid faces a fierce backlash after he quietly dropped a ban on high-powered rifles
The Home Secretary's u-turn on the military-grade weapons follows a planned rebellion by Tory backbenchers and the DUP
HOME SECRETARY Sajid Javid faces a fierce backlash after quietly dropping a ban on high-powered military grade rifles.
The move follows a planned rebellion by Tory backbenchers and the DUP.
The threat forced the Government to pull its Offensive Weapons Bill – central to a crackdown on knife crime – from the Commons last month.
It will come back to the House on Wednesday – but without the ban on .50 calibre rifles the police are desperate to remove from the street.
More than 30 Tory MPs wanted to water down the proposal because they are used in shooting sports.
Labour’s Shadow Policing and Crime Minister Louise Haigh panned the move after it emerged yesterday.
She stormed: “Senior offices have warned the police have no known protection against these destructive weapons and yet ministers have still caved in to their restive backbenchers.”
The National Crime Agency says the .50 calibre guns have the power to immobilise a light or medium-size vehicle or truck at 1,800 metres.
Similar weapons were used by the IRA against British soldiers in the 1990s.
There are just 129 rifles of .50 calibre held under licence in England and Wales –largely to be fired on Ministry of Defence ranges in long-range shooting competitions.
The Home Office had declined to comment by yesterday evening.
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