Major pledges to tighten law on gun control

The Prime Minister last night pledged new controls on semi-automatic weapons in the wake of the Dunblane massacre. He said legislation would be introduced in the autumn following the official inquiry by Lord Cullen into rules governing firearms.

The move came as backbenchers piled on pressure for action following the decision by the Australian government to ban semi-automatic weapons only 12 days after a gunman left 35 dead in Tasmania.

Patience wore thin among MPs that curbs in Britain would have to wait until recommendations were made by Lord Cullen from an inquiry that has yet to start properly, weeks after the slaughter in the primary school at Dunblane.

Last night Mr Major announced that legislation on the control of semi- automatic weapons "will be introduced in the autumn after Lord Cullen's inquiry into the murders. The Government will make parliamentary time available."

It was not immediately clear what type of weapons Mr Major had in mind, since a wide range of automatic and semi- automatic guns were banned in 1988 following the Hungerford massacre.

Earlier the Home Secretary, Michael Howard, said the Government was ready to implement any proposals put forward as backbench frustration grew in both main parties.

Ministers have insisted that they will not be forced into a knee-jerk reaction by pressure for a ban on hand guns and other weapons.

David Mellor, the former Home Office minister, said there was now an overwhelming case for a ban on hand guns above .22 calibre. "There comes a time when people have to stop talking about knee-jerk reaction - it is obvious the Australians do not think it's a knee-jerk reaction to act so quickly," he said.

"My worry is that by the time Lord Cullen has brooded over these matters it will be the autumn and it is very difficult to envisage any legislation being in place before next year at the earliest."

The Labour MP Harry Barnes called on the Government to "stop dithering" and learn a lesson from Australia. Mr Barnes, MP for Derbyshire North- East, said: "If the Australians can move so quickly after their massacre in Tasmania, it shows that following Dunblane we could take action rather than having to conduct further inquiries."

But Mr Howard insisted it would be foolish to rush into new laws ahead of the inquiry. "Australia is a country which has at the moment a fairly lax system of gun control. We have one of the tightest systems of gun control in the world," he said.