Using an airgun
"It is legal for anyone above the age of 14 to shoot an airgun,
unsupervised, on private land where full permission to shoot has been
given. Those below the age of 14 may shoot airguns only if closely
supervised by someone over 21 years of age. The supervising adult is
legally responsible for the actions of the junior shooter.
Airguns may be used only on land where the user has full permission to
shoot. This may be your garden, or private land owned or leased by an
individual or club. Remember,
wherever you shoot, you must ensure that all of your pellets remain
within the boundary of the land to which your shooting permission
applies.
It is illegal to shoot an airgun on any
land, including common land, river banks, public land, recreation areas
or playing fields and land covered by water, i.e. lakes, ponds, canals
and rivers where you do not have full permission from the lands owner or
its tenant. It is also illegal to fire an airgun closer than 50 feet (15
metres) from the centre of a public highway, bridleway or footpath, if
your shooting causes upset or inconvenience to those using the highway.
It is legal for persons authorised by the landowner or tenant to
carry out vermin control with an air rifle. The legal airgun quarry
species include brown rats, magpies, carrion crows, rooks, jays,
squirrels, woodpigeons, feral pigeons and collared doves. Other species,
such as lesser black backed gulls, herring gulls and greater black
backed gulls are best left to professional pest controllers".
|