Smyth calls on Minister to meet gun sport reps

Minister James Browne is being urged to meet gun sporting enthusiasts to shape future policy in this area.

The Minister published his Firearms Expert Committee (FEC) reports last month despite numerous requests from the Firearms Users Representative Group (FURG) to meet with him ahead of publication.

FURG is a representative group of over 100,000 firearms users across 15 sporting gun organisations who say they are unhappy with the tone and direction of the policy.

The group's legal spokesperson, Liam Nolan, questioned the credibility of the FEC highlighting how one of the two of its "ordinary" members had distanced themselves from the report and the findings and recommendations contained in them.

"He [the Minister] has agreed to meet with the IFA to discuss those aspects of the FEC reports, which touch on landowner interests, while blatantly ignoring, indeed refusing to hear, firearms users' concerns,” said Mr Nolan.

Minister Browne has said he will meet with FURG representatives once an online public consultation process has completed.

Fianna Fáil Deputy Niamh Smyth has written to the Minister to ask him to listen to the views of gun sporting constituents saying it's important all groups have "ownership" of the report in order to "buy in" to it.

"I ask you Minister to bring FURG to the table now and hear their submissions and concerns at this meaningful stage and not to offer them time down the road that will be seen as tokenism. I can feel their frustration, annoyance and disappointment at being ignored and it is not too late to stop their grievance," she said.