50,000 disabled people participate in shooting as one of the few physical activities in which they can participate on equal terms with the able-bodied. 3.2 million people have participated in clay shooting. More than three quarters of British woodland is planted specifically for shooting sports. Some 1.4 million people have at some point taken part in game shooting. The equivalent of 50,000 'football pitches' of game crops are planted each year providing cover and food for countless species in addition to game birds.
Shooting sports have an enviable safety record.
Home Office Minister, Charles Clarke MP, stated in January that illegally held guns are the main threat to public safety, not lawfully owned and used firearms. Game shooting and the associated countryside management directly generate around 5,000 gamekeepers' jobs. Shooting sports support in excess of 40,000 jobs. The sport of angling still maintains its pre-eminence as the country's most popular participant pastime. The 1994 National Angling Survey concluded that there were 2.9 million anglers in England and Wales.