It's not strictly accurate to say that "virtually all domestic firearm ownership" is banned in the UK - it's just highly controlled and restricted. There's roug

It's not strictly accurate to say that "virtually all domestic firearm ownership" is banned in the UK - it's just highly controlled and restricted. There's roughly 800,000 people in Great Britain (Northern Ireland has it's own, separate, firearms laws) with firearms licences about 80% of which are for shotguns. In practical terms, firearm ownership is restricted to shotguns and rifles and you've got to be able to demonstrate why you wish to own a firearm - i.e. pest control, sports shooting, etc - and you've got to have a clean criminal record and pass a background check by the police. It's also at the discretion of your local police force to grant you the licence or not, which is likely to depend on things like how suitable the choice of firearm is to it's stated purpose - you'd be unlikely to get a licence for .50 calibre rifle if your stated purpose is hunting rabbits for example. While the UK doesn't have a huge gun-culture, they're far from banned - as evidenced by there being roughly 1 legally held gun for every 70 people in Great Britain (GB - The UK less Northern Ireland, as noted above NI has different licensing laws). - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/firearms-law-guidance-to-the-police-2012 https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/firearms-law-guid...