More than a dozen firearm and shotgun licences were torn up by police last year.

Officers revoked four permits for firearms and ten for shotguns in Sussex in the year to March 2023.

It is part of work by police to catch “unsuitable gun owners”, said a spokesman for the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC).

The BASC praised the vetting process individuals must pass when applying for a licence. They said only a "small" percentage of overall certificate that have their permits revoked.

Martin Parker, head of firearms at the association, said the reason for the record numbers is "almost certainly the introduction of statutory guidance on suitability checks of certificate holders in 2021", which the BASC assisted in creating to improve consistency across police forces in England and Wales.

"Shooting is an incredibly popular activity, incorporating tens of thousands of jobs, highly competitive target and clay pigeon shooting, and essential wildlife management,” said Mr Parker.

But not everyone is happy with the data, with some saying it shows that unsuitable gun owners remain active in the UK.

Iain Overton, executive director of Action on Armed Violence, said the figures "can be viewed two ways.

“The first is, reassuringly, in that there are attempts to assure that firearms in the UK are only held by those capable of using them legally. The second is a cause of concern, that the numbers are rising.”

Across England and Wales, there were 418 firearms licences revoked in 2022 to 2023, up from 385 the year before and the greatest number on record, which nationally began in 1992.

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Some 1,161 shotgun licences were removed, the greatest figure in the last six years.

"The truth is that we, compared to many countries, are a remarkably safe nation for firearm deaths,” said Mr Overton.

“Ultimately, we should be more concerned with knife crime than gun crime. In an imperfect world, our gun laws work.”

It comes as ten firearms or shotguns were lost or stolen in Sussex last year, up from six in 2020 to 2021.

Sussex Police were contacted for comment.