Typically28inside-by-sides,
chamberedto 2½inandusing
Englishloadedammunition,but
themarkethaschangedoutof all
recognition.Wehaven’tquotedon
a bespokegunforyears.Thenew
gunmarketgoesautomaticallyto
Mayfairorbuysonlineandnow
peopleknowlessabouttheirguns
andappeardisinclinedto findout
more.Marginscutto theboneand
priceoutweighingbespokeskills,so
in whathasbecomea commercially
hostileenvironmentandwithmuch
regret,wewillshortly be retiring
fromthefray.”
Westrecognisestheprovenance,
buthasto lookto thewiderpicture.
“Shootingin theUKsupports
theequivalentof morethan70,000
full-timejobs,contributesupwards
of £2.5bnannuallyongoodsand
services,is worth£2bnto theUK
economy,has600,000shootersof
livequarryspecies,claysandtargets,
andanestimated4mairgunowners,
so ourtrademembershavea wide
commercialtheatrein which to
operate,”hetoldme.
“Myroleat theGTAis to
helpthembecomebetterat what
theydo,helpliftstandardsin the
operateandhowto complywith
HomeOfficerulings,whichwewill
hopeto haveshapedandinfluenced
beforetheirintroduction.”
Westalsorepresentstheir
interestsontheBritishShooting
SportsCouncil(BSSC),a thrice-
yearlygettogetherof thisumbrella
organisation,whichunderthe
currentchairmanshipof Jonathan
DjanoglyMP,strivesto achieve
consensusonpoliticalandlegislative
issuesaffectingshooting sport in all
itsmanifestations.
The 15 seatsaroundthat
tableincluderepresentatives
of sucheclecticanddisparate
disciplinesas theAssociationof
ProfessionalShootingInstructors,
thePreparatorySchools’Rifle
Association,theMuzzleLoaders
Association,theHistorical
BreechloadingSmallarms
Association,theDeactivated
WeaponsAssociationandtheUK
PracticalShootingAssociation.So
wheredoesWestseethe industry
that he represents?Legislation
“Domesticlegislationhasbeen
increasinglyshapedbyinternational
ies,andthis
of shooting
r areaof public
European
EFD)is
to Britain’s
andviathe
a major
bbyingprocess
form.
eservingthe
chas antique
ousesandyoung
disciplineand
ueto bring
sensethinking
ughtin to
it doesn’timpactonthelegitimateactivities
of ourmembersin pursuitof their
businessenterprises.TheBSSC’s
representationof ourinterestsat
theWorldForumonShooting
Activities(WFSA) gives us skin in
thegame.”
Westis clearin hisroleheis not
chargedwithtalkingaboutshooting
perse, orcommentingonhowhis
memberspursuetheircommercial
ends,as longas theydoit within
thecurrentlegislation.Heis
concernedaboutwhathedescribes
as“presentationalrisk”andis
evangelicalaboutcommunications,
whichheconsidersessentialto
keepingmembersinformed of
potentialpitfalls.
“Membersof theGTAare
prettytech-savvy.About80%have
websites,thoughnotallof our
craftsmenmembersnecessarilyneed
one,almostallcommunicateon
email,andwearejustlaunchinga
Facebookpage,so theappointment
of BenTolhurstas ourmarketing
andcommunicationsofficerwill
helputilisethisfully.Hehasalready
begunto helpassimilatehow
wecanimproveourcontactto,
fromandwithourmembers,and
promotetheexperienceof shooting.
“Weneedto encourage
youngstersto tryshooting,andair
weaponsareoneveryimportant
entrypoint,so ournewAirgun
SportsTrustsetsoutto promote
bestpracticeandhelpto reconfigure
theHomeOfficeairweapons
safetybookletbymakingit more
appealing and hiding the safety“We need to
encourage
youngsters to try
shooting,and air
weapons are one
very important
entry point.”BenTolhurstwillbea keylink
betweentheGTA,itsmembers
andtheshooting
community at large.