asked the Minister for Justice if he will state, with reference to the 110,063 firearm certificates in the State, the number held by members of gun clubs and the numbers held in each county or Garda district.
Written Answers. - Firearms Certificates.
77.
A member of a rifle club or other gun club authorised pursuant to section 2 (4) (d) of the Firearms Act, 1925 (as inserted by section 15 of the Firearms Act, 1964) is exempt from the need to possess a firearm certificate for the use of a firearm while engaged as a member of the club in a competition or target practice at a range or other place authorised under the section. The number of clubs so authorised is ten. There are no statistics available of the numbers of members of such clubs who possess firearm certificates entitling them to use firearms otherwise than as members of their clubs in conformity with the provision referred to.
The number of certificates issued to persons residing in each of the Garda divisions in the State in the year ended 30th June, 1970, is as follows:—
|
Garda Division |
Number of certificates issued |
|
Carlow/Kildare |
5,400 |
|
Cavan/Monaghan |
6,870 |
|
Cork East |
6,755 |
|
Cork West |
5,098 |
|
Donegal |
5,522 |
|
Dublin (North) |
3,668 |
|
Dublin (South) |
5,337 |
|
Galway West |
5,736 |
|
Kerry |
3,912 |
|
Leix/Offaly |
6,347 |
|
Limerick/Clare |
8,077 |
|
Longford/Westmeath |
4,904 |
|
Louth/Meath |
7,348 |
|
Mayo |
5,270 |
|
Roscommon/Galway East |
5,007 |
|
Sligo/Leitrim |
3,696 |
|
Tipperary |
6,986 |
|
Waterford/Kilkenny |
6,497 |
|
Wexford |
7,633 |
78.
asked the Minister for Justice the number of firearm certificates issued by the gardaí to persons resident in the State in each of the last five years; and the number of gun clubs in each such year.
The information sought is as follows:
|
Year ended 30th June |
Number of firearm certificates issued by the gardaí |
Number of rifle or other gun clubs standing authorised under section 2 (4) (d) of the Firearms Act, 1925 (as inserted by section 15 of the Firearms Act, 1964) |
|
1970 |
110,063 |
10 |
|
1969 |
108,059 |
9 |
|
1968 |
104,672 |
9 |
|
1967 |
104,194 |
7 |
|
1966 |
104,860 |
7 |
NOTE: A club recognised as a game preservation society under section 15 of the Game Preservation Act, 1930, may popularly by known as a gun club but that term, if used in that context, has no significance in so far as the Firearms Acts, 1925 and 1964, are concerned.