But police play down the idea that the shootings are part of a turf war between rival gangs of dealers. They believe the shootings are more haphazard - all the more worrying for those who believe that the gun culture is out of control. Since the operation began there have been 150 arrests and 15 firearms recovered. The shootings are not acceptable and we will not allow a gun culture to develop in Nottingham. Until now on mainland Britain, armed officers have been deployed only for diplomatic duties, to tackle specific incidents such as sieges and armed robberies, or in the light of a particular terrorist threat.
Armed officers are routinely to be seen at airports.
It is up to chief constables to decide if, and how, they wish to deploy armed officers. They do not have to seek clearance from the government. Indeed, the home officer minister, Charles Clarke, was only told of the move in Nottingham last week, but has now asked for a full briefing. The former deputy constable of Greater Manchester, John Stalker, said that thousands of police officers would be aghast at what was happening in Nottingham. We are moving towards what is happening in places like America and South Africa and away from our concept of an unarmed police force.