Yesterday relatives of people killed or injured by acts of gun crime clashed with sporting enthusiasts over the government’s plans to restrict the manufacture and sale of imitation and replica firearms.
Members of the Gun Control Network (GCN) hit out at an international campaign being run by devotees of paintball and the similar but more militaristic airsoft shooting events.
Steve Walker of GCN said: “We don’t want to stop them enjoying their sport. The problem is the weapons they use. If they were brightly coloured and distinguishable from real guns there would be no problem.”
Frank Bothamley, who runs Free Fire Zone, an airsoft event site in Cambridgeshire, said enthusiasts felt “persecuted”. He added: “It is worth remembering that no one has ever been killed with an airsoft gun”.
Source: http://politics.guardian.co.uk/homeaffairs/story/0,11026,1549814,00.html