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A firearms unit is an armed unit within each territorial police force in the United Kingdom.[1] For the most part, the police forces of the United Kingdom are unarmed; however, all have firearms units to provide the police force with the capability to deal with armed criminals. A police officer cannot apply to join the firearms unit without first finishing their two-year probationary period, with a further two years in a core policing role for some forces.[2] Firearms unit is the most common name outside of the capital, while that of London's Metropolitan Police Service is called the Specialist Firearms Command, Trojan, or SCO19. Within the media, it is sometimes compared to the SWAT units of the United States.
The number of firearms legally available to criminals is low due to the United Kingdom's gun laws requiring licensing and background checks to legally acquire and possess most types of firearms.[3] In the majority of cases, the presence of an armed officer can often be enough to negotiate the surrender of an armed criminal and the number of times a police firearm is deliberately discharged at suspects in the UK rarely exceeds around three occasions per year. For example, Thames Valley Police has only fired at a suspect once in its entire history.[4]
Only three services in the United Kingdom routinely arm officers due to the nature of their work; the Ministry of Defence Police which polices MOD property, the Civil Nuclear Constabulary which polices civil nuclear facilities, and the Police Service of Northern Ireland due to the IRA threat.[5][6][7]
On 13 January 2016, following the November 2015 Paris attacks it was decided to significantly increase the numbers of armed officers in London. The then Commissioner of the London Metropolitan Police, Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe has decided that he will double the number of armed officers and promised a 'significant' further announcement.[8]
^"Metropolitan Police Force's Firearms Unit". Global-defence.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2008. Retrieved 7 May 2009.
^Tayside Police Web Development Unit. "Tayside Police - Specialist Units - Firearms". Tayside.police.uk. Archived from the original on 29 March 2008. Retrieved 7 May 2009.
^Waldren, Michael J. (2007). Armed Police, The Police Use of Firearms since 1945. England: Sutton. p. 224. ISBN 978-0-7509-4637-7.
^"Underzone - Police specialists - Firearms officers". Archived from the original on 6 June 2008. Retrieved 20 February 2008.
^Ministry of Defence Police – Home Archived 12 February 2006 at the Wayback Machine
^"Welcome to the Police Service of Northern Ireland". Psni.police.uk. Retrieved 7 May 2009.
^"Civil Nuclear Constabulary". Cnc.police.uk. 1 May 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2009.
^White, Mark (13 January 2016). "Met Police To Double Armed Officers On Patrol". Sky News. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
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