Signal 6,268 firearms offences in England and Wales, up 6%

Summary

In the year to March 2024, police in England and Wales recorded 6,268 firearms offences, six per cent more than in the previous year. The report presents this figure, together with rising drug crime, as evidence that the threat from serious and organised crime is growing. Such crime is chiefly driven by financial gain through trade in goods and the exploitation of people, and cases affecting the UK often have an international dimension. In linking to terrorism, the report observes that ties between organised crime groups and terrorist actors persist and ease the movement of illicit goods such as weapons. It stresses that reducing drug and firearms offences would make society safer by lowering the risk that vulnerable people are exploited by crime groups.