Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP), has criticised the ban on handguns. During a phone-in as part of a radio interview on LBC 97.3, a listener asked if Mr Farage thought it was right to ban handguns. He replied: ?I would not like us to go to the American system, which strikes me as being absolutely crazy that you can go and buy automatic repeating rifles down at a local gunshop that looks more like a supermarket. We need a proper gun licensing system, which to a large extent I think we already have, and I think the ban on handguns is ludicrous.?

Mr Farage?s comments have been criticised by senior Police officers, politicians and academics, who argue that the reintroduction of handguns would lead to a rise in gun crime.