We need better control of guns
In the wake of the tragic mass murders in Cumbria, I suggest we need to address our own growing gun culture in Ireland, where in excess of 220,000 firearms are legally held by citizens.
The problem, however, is that the vast majority of guns used in non-gangland murders, in suicides, in attempts to kill or injure a spouse or partner in domestic disputes, or in killings legally defined as manslaughter cases in Ireland, are legally held.
The weapons that Derrick Bird used to kill 12 people and injure scores of others were, according to media reports, a hunting rifle and a shotgun. Both types of guns are widely on sale and are easily accessible in Ireland.
A measure that would make guns safer in our country would be to have all of them micro-chipped or electronically tagged in such a way that the gardai or other statutory controlling authority could track the movement of each weapon at all times.
This would be a variation on the proposed micro-chipping of dogs contained in the draft Dog Breeding Establishments Bill -- the aim being simply to keep tabs on every gun in the country.
Otherwise we take our chances with those 220,000 guns out there and their 220,000 owners.
John Fitzgerald
Co Kilkenny
Irish Independent
