Question
How many staff working in the firearms branch each of the last 10 years
1) Broken down by grades
2) Actual spend for year
3) Receipts for the year
How many applications in each of the last 10 years
1) Average processing times per year
2) Total number of firearms certificates held
Answer
Unfortunately due to how records are kept across various departments and systems it has not been possible to retrieve the information in the format you have requested, however we have sought to provide as much information as possible to assist in clarifying the position of the performance and efficiency of Firearms and Explosives Branch and to best demonstrate the efforts and progress in streamlining work and providing a high quality service to members of the public.
DOJ Internal Audit have completed reviews into the standard of work completed in Firearms and Explosives Branch in 2021/22 and Summer 2023 – on both occasions the branch received a GREEN Satisfactory rating (the highest available) and the staff were commended.
It is well known that due to resourcing issues and growing wait times a critical incident was called by the organisation in Summer 2022. High volume of applications which were queued for assessment and long waiting times which were negatively impacting members of the public and firearms dealers needed to be addressed in order to provide a better service with limited resources. Since that time changes have been put in place to reduce these queues, this has been largely successful for simple applications and processes in general. Work is ongoing to reduce the complex queue.
How many staff working in the firearms branch each of the last 10 years
1) Broken down by grades
2) Actual spend for year
Prior to 2021 Firearms and Explosives Branch was an established team of between 36-40 staff members at any one time across all grades (ASO, EO2, EO1, SO, DP).
Following a PSNI restructure of management and resources to better reflect the actual alignment of staff to the correct teams and budgets, in 2021 all Firearms Enquiry Officers positioned in district were brought under FEB. The branch then appeared as a team of between 65-70 staff members at any one time, again across all grades. For clarity these staff always worked as part of FEB however they’re cost was previously attributed to the district where they were positioned and therefore did not appear in the running costs for this branch.
The shortfall in funding which has therefore increased on paper since 2021 is a reflection of all FEB costs now being attached to the Branch when previously many of them were dispersed throughout the organisation. Even prior to this, the function was not cost neutral to police (as seen in example below) and the shortfall is and has always been covered from the main PSNI budget meaning this money is not available for other front line policing functions.
Example 2025 Payroll costs 3,135,000.00 Additional Costs 160,000.00* Receipts 1,300,000.00 Shortfall 1,995,000.00 | Example 2018 Payroll costs 1,764,000.00 Additional Costs 93,149.00* Receipts 1,094,015.00 Shortfall 763,134.00 |
*The additional costs above payroll required to run the team include postage, overtime and payment for medical statements which the NIO Guidance on Firearms Controls require be paid by the PSNI and not the applicant. The increase in this amount reflects overtime costs previously attributed to a different PSNI budget now under FEB and increased requirement for medical reports to inform decision making.
3) Receipts for the year
| Financial Year | Actual Receipts |
| 2017/18 | 1,368,456.41 |
| 2018/19 | 1,094,015.67 |
| 2019/20 | 1,222,909.00 |
| 2020/21 | 1,390,155.50 |
| 2021/22 | 1,324,317.21 |
| 2022/23 | 1,326,143.60 |
| 2023/24 | 1,074,169.13 |
| 2024/25 | 1,172,754.26 |
| 2025/26 | 1,300,000.00 (est.) |
How many applications in each of the last 10 years
1) Average processing times per year
Our systems do not hold this information in this format however we publish the branch performance figures monthly on the PSNI Website - Firearms and Explosives Branch Performance Monthly Performance | PSNI and this currently shows 90.6% of online applications completed within 16 weeks.
As pointed out by the auditors in 2023 the involvement of 3rd parties and waiting times around their necessary contributions make it impossible with current systems to properly measure and assess average processing times. However, I can advise that a simple application is currently processed in less than six weeks from date of receipt. In relation to complex applications there is a queue for these matters to be assessed by senior decision makers and this can be up to 18 months from date of receipt. Where appropriate and necessary, for example loss of livestock, an application will be escalated to be completed out of date order.
We are currently recruiting additional senior decision makers who once trained will assist in bringing the complex queue and waiting time down to a reasonable business as usual timeframe. These matters require assessment at a senior level in order that important details can be reviewed and assessed and the correct decision can be made in relation to acquiring firearms. Although the wait time is extremely frustrating for applicants and staff alike, the importance of diligent assessment of threat, risk and harm to ensure public safety cannot be overstated.
2) Total number of firearms certificates held
The number of FAC held is approximately 53,170 but this figures changes daily.
Trevor Clarke - DUP