Role of BASC members praised at Liberal Democrats conference

[Conor O'Gorman]

More than 200 people joined a rural reception, hosted by BASC and the Angling Trust, during the Liberal Democrats Autumn Conference in Bournemouth. Speakers at the reception included Alistair Carmichael MP, who is also chair of the Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Select Committee.

More details here:

Role of BASC members praised at Liberal Democrats conference

More than 200 people attended a rural reception hosted by BASC and the Angling Trust at the Liberal Democrats Autumn Conference.

basc.org.uk

Alistair Carmichael MP also visited the BASC stand at the Newbury Show at the weekend enroute to the conference.



As an all-party organisation, BASC attends all autumn party conferences. Having attended the Reform and Liberal Democrat conferences we will also be at the Green, Labour and Conservative conferences in the weeks ahead.

 

[timbrayford]

With all due respect Conor, there appears to be an anti-gun bias about Ed Davey, or have I got it wrong?

 

[bowji john]

Lib Dem?

Are they not the folk who pretended to be pro British

With all that singing and flag waving

 

[Conor O'Gorman]

With all due respect Conor, there appears to be an anti-gun bias about Ed Davey, or have I got it wrong?

With all due respect, I am not getting into a discussion about politicians on this forum.

 

[Reloader708]

With all due respect, I am not getting into a discussion about politicians on this forum.

This appears to be a very strange response to a genuine question, the role of BASC is to protect our rights as shooters against political interference. The lib dem leader as openly announced his dislike of private firearms ownership therefore this subject need addressing.

 

[tackb]

This appears to be a very strange response to a genuine question, the role of BASC is to protect our rights as shooters against political interference. The lib dem leader as openly announced his dislike of private firearms ownership therefore this subject need addressing.

especially as he is using a political party to promote basc ?

as i've said a number of times some honest self reflection would not go amiss with the basc.

 

[Pellet Pinger]

With all due respect, I am not getting into a discussion about politicians on this forum.

Yet you posted this as the thread title!?

Role of BASC members praised at Liberal Democrats conference​

 

[Heym SR20]

Rather than the endless BASC bashing by the same bunch of non BASC members, why don’t we actually applaud the likes of the BASC who actually go to these conferences on behalf of all those involved in Shooting and Conservation and making them totally aware if the valuable work that we all do in the countryside.

Just about any politician is “antigun” in the sense that any body can freely get hold of a 20 shot semi auto pistol or AK47. Most politicians have over the years voted for firearms legislation that allows for those with legitimate reasons and who are of good character to own and use firearms and shotguns.

Pistols, semiautomatic military rifles etc where never within the remit of the BASC, Nature Conservancy etc etc. Target shooters had or have their separate organisations such as the NRA.

 

[cjm1066]

Good news, we have to get politicians to understand our sport.

 

[Mike L]

Has anyone noticed that the majority of BASC bashers on this forum can’t be arsed to support the forum financially?

Seems funny they welcome the platform to peddle carp, but just for free.

 

[Heym SR20]

With all due respect Conor, there appears to be an anti-gun bias about Ed Davey, or have I got it wrong?

Ed Davey did say that the last thing anything of us want in the UK is for Farage to give us a Trump like country where teachers have to go on training courses on how to protect school children in schools against gun toting criminals coming into schools and killing lots of children. This is pretty much a monthly, if not weekly occurrence in the US - so much so that it is hardly ever reported.

I must admit I find it difficult to disagree with Ed Davey on this.

 

[Pine Marten]

Ed Davey isn't anti-gun, he's anti people being shot and anti-Reform/Farage. He's also very much pro-whatever-gets-people's-attention. I'm afraid that's just part of the job but it has its risks.

 

[Apthorpe]

Rather than the endless BASC bashing by the same bunch of non BASC members, why don’t we actually applaud the likes of the BASC who actually go to these conferences on behalf of all those involved in Shooting and Conservation and making them totally aware if the valuable work that we all do in the countryside.

Just about any politician is “antigun” in the sense that any body can freely get hold of a 20 shot semi auto pistol or AK47. Most politicians have over the years voted for firearms legislation that allows for those with legitimate reasons and who are of good character to own and use firearms and shotguns.

This is wrongheaded nonsense. It did not require the vote on any politician to allow those with legitimate reasons and good character to own and use firearms. It was a freedom they always had. Most politicians over the years have voted for firearms legislation to make life increasingly difficult, expensive and onerous for those with legitimate reasons and good character, while applying no burden whatsoever to those without.

Pistols, semiautomatic military rifles etc where never within the remit of the BASC,

Again, wrong. Pistols and semi-automatic rifles have perfectly valid sporting uses (except where their use has been banned in the UK)

Nature Conservancy etc etc. Target shooters had or have their separate organisations such as the NRA.

Which begs the question as to why BASC is congratulating itself about having secured loopholes in the impending legislation for people outside their area, while not really doing much for those within.

 

[Apthorpe]

Ed Davey isn't anti-gun, he's anti people being shot and anti-Reform/Farage.

So far as his record is concerned, he has offered no worthwhile policy to get rid of illegal guns and reduce shootings, nor does he have any plausible solution to ongoing governmental failure to deal with the issues which led to Reform's strength in the polls. All one can say is that he has been conspicuously wrong in every major respect on those. If one wants to put up politicians guaranteed to lose to Farage, any Lib Dem will do.

He's also very much pro-whatever-gets-people's-attention. I'm afraid that's just part of the job but it has its risks.

It's not part of the job. The job is developing and implementing good quality policies to run the country effectively. Pretending the business of controlling other people's lives is a celebrity reality show is exactly why he and the Lib Dems are dangerously unsuitable for the job. We need to get rid of this sort of Guardian reading idiocracy - it has ruined the country.

 

[Pine Marten]

It's not part of the job. The job is developing and implementing good quality policies to run the country effectively.

I'm afraid that just developing sensible evidence-based policy is important but not enough to persuade. It's not like Reform's appeal is mostly based on evidence for instance. Or Trump's. Or any number of political organisations of all sides. You need the evidence, but it's not enough on its own. Loads of people on all sides believe they're totally rational and decide everything objectively.

This is, to put it nicely, cobblers.

 

[Whitefront]

Ed Davey warns NHS will be privatised and gun laws rolled back by ‘hypocrite’ Farage in Lib Dem conference speech – as it happened

Liberal Democrat leader issues appeal for Tory voters to join his party and takes aim at Reform and far right in UK

www.theguardian.com

Scroll down a bit. The Lib Dems - who are intrinsically opposed to the private ownership of firearms, like most lefties - are milking the fact that back in 2014 Farage had the temerity to question the logic of the UK's sweeping handgun ban. The article states:

Nigel Farage said: “I think proper gun licensing is something we’ve done in this country responsibly and well for a long time, and I think the kneejerk legislation that Blair brought in that meant that the British Olympic pistol team have to go to France to even practise was just crackers.

“If you criminalise handguns then only the criminals carry the guns. It’s really interesting that since Blair brought that piece of law in, gun crime doubled in the next five years in this country.”

“I think that we need a proper gun licensing system, which to a large extent I think we already have, and I think the ban on handguns is ludicrous.”

A Reform source now says: “Reform has no intention of changing the gun laws.”

[However, worth noting that Reform is the only party that actually says it supports country sports]

 

[Apthorpe]

I'm afraid that just developing sensible evidence-based policy is important but not enough to persuade. It's not like Reform's appeal is mostly based on evidence for instance. Or Trump's.

Of course it is. Farage's appeal is entirely based on the fact that he has correctly identified a series of major issues where the main parties had ignored or concealed the evidence and/or been complicit in creating the problem - whether it was the EU, immigration, mad leftwing culture war, Islamism or institutional failure. It is the complete abandonment of sensible policy by the main parties which has opened the door to him. God knows it's not his looks!

The same applies for Trump. He is merely the reflection of how deranged and discredited the Democrats had made themselves.

Or any number of political organisations of all sides. You need the evidence, but it's not enough on its own. Loads of people on all sides believe they're totally rational and decide everything objectively.

This is, to put it nicely, cobblers.

Incidentally, the practice of blaming the electorate for institutional or technocratic failure does not wash electorally. Generally speaking, it is not the public which caused the current dysfunctional state of politics, it is the legacy politicians and bureaucrats being completely useless.

 

[andyk]

I really don’t get the negativity over this, it’s like some people on here are so determined to be angry at BASC for other mis-steps (and I’d agree they exist) that they have to see the negative in everything it does. If BASC got handguns back to s1, I could see some on here only being able to complain that SLRs remain illegal.

A national party appearing to endorse field sports can only be a good thing in normalising (or, perhaps, re-normalising) field sports as something people do. While largely symbolic, it’s a symbol in our favour and it’s got to limit their ability to simultaneously endorse anti causes if they’re ‘on record’ being on our side.

That’s not to say much comfort can be taken from this, we all know politicians (of all creeds) will happily turn on shooters if they need to show they’re ’doing something’.

Political parties will inevitably feel the need to take a position on field sports. If BASC or other orgs don’t work to make it a positive position, LACS, HSA, OneKind etc will gladly step in to make it a negative one. So, at least on that level, this must be seen as a success.

 

[enfieldspares]

Again, wrong. Pistols and semi-automatic rifles have perfectly valid sporting uses (except where their use has been banned in the UK)

No. I disagree even though I owned and shot pistols from my first FAC at age just seven months past eighteen years old in June 1976 right up to the Tory handgun ban. Fullbore pistols might by then have been used for amusement by shooting at targets but they have only one purpose for originally being held by the public which was that of self defence. Rifles had that, self defence through defence of the realm as a valid reason and also an equally valid to be owned for use for hunting game.

And any use for shooting a targets was merely useful practice for developing skill at arms in their use. Once self defence was removed for the majority as a "good reason" to possess pistols any continued attempt to justify being permitted to own them was moot. I didn't agree with the ban but, alas, the logic of it was inescapable in respect to pistols. Why do you need a weapon capable of killing a man to merely make holes in a paper target twenty yards away?

I do fear that in some, sadly, not too distant future that target shooting if on its own as being the sole "need" to possess a centrefire rifle may indeed cease to be accepted as "good reason". By the same logic of why (if you don't shoot deer or similar or larger sized cloven footed quarry) do you need a weapon capable of killing a man at half a mile to merely make holes in a paper target? As you could equally do that hobby with a high end air rifle.

 

[cjm1066]

Broadly speaking there are two motivations for legislation, policy and knee jerk.

Policy - We have a chance with, like the proposed Section 1 for shotguns. A consultation has been proposed, which gives us a chance to respond. In the meantime, if we can get MPs on board, the policy may get a more balanced consideration as the actual proposals are being drafted.

Knee Jerk – undertaken in a hurry the opportunities for engagement are limited, talk now establish connections and gain support from MPs and the media who typically drive the agenda and report on party conferences.