THE CHAIRMAN of a Hampshire gun club has called for better facilities to be provided so that shooters can practise their hobby safely rather than face an outright ban on "BB" replica weapons.

Chairman of the Itchen Valley Shooting Club, David Downhill, 69, made a plea for better education and training in the use of guns rather than an outright ban.

Last week, the Daily Echo revealed how police had seized a haul of weapons from two men wearing camouflage clothing in a Hampshire woodland.

The pair were arrested under the Firearms Act and questioned for several hours by detectives before being released with a caution after agreeing to hand over their stash of weapons.

The haul included a replica Russian Kalashnikov AK-47 assault rifle, two carbines, a sub-machine gun and four pistols, as well as smoke grenades, flares and magazines.

Mr Downhill, of Toynbee Road in Eastleigh, told the Daily Echo: "There is a definite market for these replica guns, so why not try to control it better by providing better facilities to use them?

"Target shooters, clay pigeon shooters, even paintballers have clearly defined areas to practise in. Rather than ban guns of any sort, a better way would be to encourage a more responsible attitude through education and training.

"A total ban on all handguns has only seen a 400 per cent increase in armed crime."

He added: "I would also like to point out that the guns shown in the article were in fact "Soft Air Guns" that fire brightly coloured plastic balls that sting a lot less than paintballs do.

"A proper BB gun fires steel ball bearings which are a different story."

Last week after the incident in woods adjoining Telegraph Hill in West End, two men, a 32-year-old from Horton Heath and a 24-year-old from Weston were arrested and cautioned for an offence contrary to the Firearms Act of 1968 for possessing an imitation firearm in a public place without lawful authority or reasonable excuse.

Inspector Paul Newstead from Hedge End police said: "Anyone who carries any weapon in a public place should be aware of the untold alarm and distress it can cause to other members of the public.

"We strongly advise people not to do this as they face the risk of being arrested, prosecuted and having their weapons confiscated."

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