Proposal to remove sound moderators from firearms licensing controls

As you may be aware, for many years, it has been argued that sound moderators should be removed from the certification process.  It is fair to say that all the parties involved, the shooting organisations, the police nationally and policy officials have accepted that this would be sensible to do; however, issues like Brexit, and the inordinate policy time that took up, delayed the legislation being moved forward.  When all the ducks were in a row to move this forward, the last Conservative Government called an early election, and that put an end to that….

On Tuesday, 17 June 2025, the Government published its response to the consultation on removing sound moderators from firearms licensing controls.  The response can be found here.

Proposal to remove sound moderators from - government response

In essence, the Government is aiming to introduce primary legislation to remove sound moderators for certification.  An excerpt from the report states;

Having given fresh consideration to this issue, the Government is of the view that there are strong arguments in favour of removing sound moderators from firearms licensing controls. As set out in the consultation paper, these items are a firearms accessory that present no danger in themselves to the public.

The Government has taken account of views of those who suggested that the removal of sound moderators from firearms licensing controls could give rise to public safety risks. These views are summarised in paragraphs 5.8 and 5.9 above.

The Government has given full consideration to these issues. While we do not consider that the removal of sound moderators from firearms licensing controls will increase the risk to public safety, bearing in mind that this device does not mean that the sound of the discharge disappears altogether, we do see merit in the suggestion, set out in paragraphs 5.3 and 5.9 above, that any potential public safety risk would be reduced by a requirement to have a valid firearms certificate in order to lawfully possess a sound moderator. This would meet the original objective of removing the administrative burden on the police and shooters of having to apply for a variation of a firearms certificate in order to acquire or own a sound moderator while at the same time helping to help ensure that they were only held by those with a legitimate purpose, as demonstrated by the possession of a valid firearms certificate.

The Government does not consider it to be appropriate to use a Legislative Reform Order, made under section 1 of the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act 2006, to remove sound moderators from firearms controls. While this change can be viewed as a matter of de-regulation, the proposal is in fact to change the statutory definition of firearm as set out in section 57 of the Firearms Act 1968. The objective will be achieved by removing section 57(1)(d) and related provisions from the Firearms Act 1968, while also amending that Act to make it an offence for a person to possess a sound moderator unless that person is in possession of a firearm certificate allowing for lawful possession of a firearm. The Government is of the view that the proper course would be to make these statutory changes through primary legislation, and we will seek to make this change when Parliamentary time allows.

In summary, this means that moderators will be removed from certification once the parliamentary time and the appropriate legislative vehicle are identified.  This can only be viewed as a positive. It will save time and money in applying for a variation and will remove a burden from the firearms licensing departments.

We are aware of queries being raised regarding the need for certification to have a sound moderator.  Although not precisely the same, there is precedent in that you need a shotgun certificate to purchase shotgun cartridges, but do not need one to possess cartridges.  It’s a light-touch mechanism to provide a public safety overview. 

In the meantime, we will keep you updated on progress and timescales as we learn more about them.  Should you have any queries regarding this, please don’t hesitate to contact the office and ask.