Chamber and committees

Petitioner submission of 20 July 2021

PE1874/G - Introduce legislation to create artillery and firearms exclusion zones around places of spiritual importance and religious worship

The reassurances of the Scottish Government’s initial submission that:

“Legal and policy frameworks governing the development and operation of potentially noisy developments, including firing ranges, are proportionate, robust and effective”;

unfortunately hasn’t been borne out by people’s experiences of what has been demonstrably happening in Scotland.

This petition reflects the clear wish of thousands to the Scottish Government that we have specific places in Scotland that are wholly free from gunfire. Not generic “noisy developments” but, specifically, gunfire.

The nature of gunfire isn’t equivalent to audible traffic noise nor nightclub music; therefore analogies referencing current planning legislation, designed to address commonplace ambient noise, aren’t equivalent nor pertinent. I doubt few MSPs would accept the introduction of regular sniper gunfire where they live? 

The Government submission reflects a current confidence in procedures and legislation that submission PE1874/B shows has already demonstrably failed to reassure. It describes what should have ideally worked, rather than recognising what actually hasn’t? Reassurances that there’s currently no problem necessitating amended legislation are unconvincing, when PE1874/B points to an example that demonstrates the current problem.

It references existing legislation and tiers of UK/Scottish/Local Government, but doesn’t address a test case where despite local objections and the absence of local authority planning permission, commercial long-range sniper rifle activity occurred regardless and without consequence, beside Scotland’s only Buddhist monastery.

Are local planning departments best placed to decide if military grade firearms can be used beside places of national importance? Following the expressed objections of 22000 people, and 10000 now petitioning the Scottish Parliament to definitively legislate to prevent this in future, it’s not unreasonable for the Scottish Government to propose a helpful legislative solution to now proactively address the evident current loopholes in Scottish Law that have allowed this to happen?

If the petition’s proposal of 5-mile firearms exclusion zones is considered “too blunt” an instrument, mindful of this test case, what would the Scottish Government’s alternative proposed solution be?

Essentially by citing standard Noise and Planning regulations, The Scottish Government currently seems to infer that there is nothing special to protect about Scotland’s places of international spiritual importance? While this is a characteristic view habitually expressed by the Humanist Society, the Scottish Government’s national tourism body, Visit Scotland, simultaneously specially promotes such places: highlighting their locations “in a quiet rural setting” and offering “meditation in a peaceful and tranquil setting”!

These places are important to many more people (nationally and internationally) than just local residents with a voice in local planning applications and local election suffrage. They belong to everyone in Scotland as part of our national heritage, benefitting the mental health and well-being of the many who visit them to find peace of mind. However, they are clearly not currently protected.

Up to this point, I suspect that no-one would have thought that such protections were necessary, as most would have assumed that no one would be so insensitive as to actually develop firearms ranges beside such inappropriate locations. Current arrangements rely upon courtesy and respect. If these are eclipsed by any potential developer’s determination to financially profit from shooting, then what? Shooting evidently continues regardless of the absence of planning permission.

Trespass/Land Access laws differ between Scotland and England. Perhaps Firearms legislation, decided by a majority of English Westminster MPs, may not reflect the fact that hillwalkers in Scotland are free to walk where they choose in our hills, without the threat of stray sniper bullets from 2 miles away? Police Scotland aren’t tasked to measure firing distances of individual sniper rifles. Should parts of rural Scotland now become curtailed by private sniper rifle use, or remain accessible for all people of our country?

Shooting enthusiasts have the alternative option of numerous existing rifle ranges located away from places of national spiritual importance. It seems entirely appropriate that access to military-grade long-range sniper rifles should only be on Ministry of Defence ranges?

Essentially this all comes down to if the Scottish Government is prepared to ignore the current problem by effectively doing nothing, and allow effectively unregulated use of firearms to ruin the ambiance of some of our places of national spiritual importance; or whether it recognises the unique value of such locations, and the expressed wishes of tens of thousands of signatories to both recent petitions, who now wish it to protectively legislate to keep these places free from gunfire.

This is a Tourism issue; a National Cultural and Social Inclusion issue; a Justice issue; and a Rural Land Reform issue. These all clearly sit within the remit of devolved powers to the Scottish Government; which now has the opportunity to legislate and create firearms exclusion zones for these specific places; guaranteeing that the situation recently endured by the monks and nuns of Samye Ling is definitively addressed and never repeated elsewhere in Scotland.

What is the Scottish Government’s alternative legislative solution otherwise?