Rupert Lowe bemoans the handgun ban due to 'one murder' in Dunblane

[noblegiraffe]

https://x.com/rewildscotland/status/2075217666600497205?s=61&t=U9XrcF693-JpMxeIueYG7g (video)

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj3gdj300lyo (article for those not on twitter)

His poor dad had to lock his guns away as a consequence.

Is 'bring back school shootings' a Restore policy?

In fairness I think most Tories supported the ban? I well remember John Major and Tony Blair going to Dunblane together after the massacre. What a contrast to the likes of Lowe and Farage.

It's cold comfort to the bereaved but I doubt the extreme right will ever gain a foothold in Scotland , especially in the light of these unforgivable comments.

No one British with even the slightest bit of a soul would refer to Dunblane as ‘one murder’ or even ‘one incident’ that his defenders think is any better. Any normal person would have corrected that description.

It was a slaughter of small children. If he had told Rogan it was our Sandy Hook he may have appreciated the horror that it was met with and an understanding of the response.

Which is why Lowe downplayed it to the suggestion of insignificance. Who does that about Dunblane? Not someone who loves our country and its people. We are proud of our response.

Might have done the country a favour, nobody will take him seriously now. There’s two things that are not up for debate in the uk - the nhs and gun ownership, we disagree of much else but not these

The Tories did support the ban. The only reason that it was Labour policy was because the government changed before it could go through the Commons for a vote. Same as the NI peace agreement which Major started and Blair finished.

There's a lot of money to be made in sucking up to the US right.

Poor old Rup won't have realised that US podcasts and youtube shows are also available in the UK. He's not the brightest spark.

He's a horrible individual. I would hate for the UK to be like US where school shootings are just accepted as one of those risks of sending your kids to school.

Yes this , John major was a supporter of the ban, i can't really remember anyone not supporting it. I am sure it was the tory government who put amendments to the firearm laws.

Compare UK gun death rates to the US. The information is a 10 second Google away.

Then come back here and admit how wrong you were.

Rupert Lowe is a dickhead.

Dunblane was an absolute tragedy.

But why is everyone talking about it as if it resulted in the banning of guns in the UK?

It resulted in the banning of pistols from being legally held under licence. Rifles and shotguns still fine. Long barrel pistols allowed. Crossbows didn't and still don't need a licence. Illegal guns are available everywhere.

It was a completely illogical kneejerk as a reaction to public opinion requiring politicians to be seen to "do something".

And just in case anyone missed it.

Rupert Lowe is a dickhead.

Dunblane was an absolute tragedy.

There were actually quite a lot of Tories who didn't. The legislation took so long for a reason. The amazing documentary, mentioned upthread, details this. The best bit, in terms of politicians is about the Scottish Tory and the Scottish Labour MP who campaigned together. I think the Tory was Forsyth. He worked so hard to bring his party round and spoke at conferences as dod the Labour man. They were bith tremendously traumatised by the event.

On Lowe, the fact he said 'up in Dunblane' airily also speaks volumes.

If so, very odd that instead of explaining that he repeated 'yes, one murder'.

I think sometimes you have to accept that people mean what they actually say.

Also, we don't just trust people with cars. We insist that people pass a test before driving, roads are extensively monitored and people can be banned from driving for various reasons.

Meanwhile, guns have not been banned in the UK.

George Robertson and Michael Forsyth. Just checked their names.

Oh yes Michael Forsyth and George Robertson? I remember they came together, i guess there will have been tories who would have objected and I do remember gun clubs didn't want change, i think it meant the majority of voices backed the changes.

Yeah his snooty dismissive attitude speaks volumes

He's an arse.

A relative of mine shot competitively and her weapon was one of those that was banned completely. She didn't whinge - she switched to another type of pistol and complied with all the regulations.

Children's lives are more important than shooting for fun.

The first reaction under that government was The Cullen Report . They declined to ban handguns. It really took quite a long campaign by the Snowdrop campaigners and by the work of Forsyth, Robertson and others to press for the total ban.

I remember that day vividly. My own son was almost exactly the same age. He's 35 now.

We know two couples who lost children in that tragedy.

I can't find the words. The man is unspeakable.

Illegal guns are NOT available everywhere. They are extremely hard to get hold of without deep organised crime contacts. Usually they are rented out for extortionate fees, and ammunition costs a fortune and is only available in very small amounts. Most of these handguns are pretty much museum pieces, often dating back to the Yugoslav wars and some back to WWII. Many of them are modified blank firers.

The fact that handguns are so hard to obtain, and so rarely used in crimes in the UK, shows that the existing licensing scheme is effective.

It’s one of those rare days seared on many people’s memory isn’t it? The photos of those lovely little children and their brave teacher.

That's good to know but plenty of other lethal weapons are available and it certainly doesn't feel as if the banning of pistols has reduced murders in this country, just the weapons of choice have changed.

It's not 'pistols'. It's handguns. Interesting you should use the word pistol like Lowe.

It wasnt a 'kneejerk' reaction. There were enquiries and reports and two law changes before the outright ban was achieved.

We have the lowest death by guns in Europe and, pretty much, the world. This is, objectively, a good thing.

And, talking of murder rates, they have dropped too. Last year they were at their lowest since 1977.

Yep, they always come out with this argument. Nobody seems to want data these days.

And @Imdunfer I hope you aren't going to trot out the old 'oh but there are lots of murders, people just aren't reporting them' that folk like to use about crime stats. Because it's bilge.

WTF do you think I would write that? Please don't make stuff up when you post.

I am merely pre-empting more nonsense from you. You are clearly unable to access and understand information, since you were unaware that the murder rate has been falling and is now the lowest since 1977. Which rather undermines your point about lethal weapons.