Could police have handled Skye shooting differently?

The horrifying unit unleashed by Finlay MacDonald successful the Highlands 2 years agone has raised questions astir the constabulary response, firearms licensing and the deployment of equipped officers crossed agrarian Scotland.

On 10 August 2022 MacDonald stabbed his woman Rowena and changeable dormant his brother-in-law John MacKinnon, earlier past attempting to execution John MacKenzie and his woman Fay.

MacDonald was jailed connected Friday for astatine slightest 28 years for what Judge Lady Drummond called "brutal and mindlessly convulsive attacks".

The Police Investigations and Review Commissioner has completed 2 reports connected what happened that time but truthful acold their conclusions person not been made public.

MacDonald’s proceedings heard helium received a shotgun certificate 15 months earlier the attacks and owned six of the weapons.

Although constabulary were pursuing him aft helium killed Mr MacKinnon, the unarmed officers were ordered not to halt him due to the fact that an equipped effect squad was connected its mode from Inverness.

MacDonald past reached the colony of Dornie wherever helium changeable the MacKenzies.

He was subdued by his injured victims and the officers who had disregarded their orders and rushed into the house.

When their equipped colleagues arrived 15 minutes later, Mrs MacKenzie told them: "You're excessively late."

The bid to the unarmed officers not to halt MacDonald's car aft the archetypal shooting was "absolutely close astatine that time," according to the Scottish Police Federation.

The officers were seconds down MacDonald erstwhile helium changeable the MacKenzies astatine their location successful Dornie and SPF president David Threadgold praised their bravery arsenic "unbelievable."

A erstwhile elder serviceman from Police Scotland's bid operation backed the acquisition fixed to the officers.

"It would person been an unfair fight," helium said. "They were simply not equipped to woody with the menace that they faced."

Police Scotland has a full of 494 authorised firearms officers, with their deployment based connected the prevalence of firearms incidents arsenic opposed to the prevalence of firearms.

Most incidents instrumentality spot successful the cardinal loop portion astir legally held weapons are successful the northbound of the country.

The Inverness equipped effect conveyance was based astir 100 miles from Teangue connected Skye, wherever MacDonald killed Mr MacKinnon.

"There are challenges that we person with the fig of firearms officers that we tin deploy crossed Scotland and they are exacerbated crossed agrarian areas," said Mr Threadgold.

Any determination to limb much officers would beryllium controversial. In 2020-21, 2 homicides involving firearms took spot successful Scotland, compared to 1 the erstwhile year.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "Proportionate policing plans for the deployment of equipped officers are successful spot crossed each communities successful Scotland. However, we bash not disclose the circumstantial proviso of immoderate policing resources successful bid to support operational integrity."

Free Church pastor Reverend Gordon Matheson knew MacDonald and said the clip taken for an equipped effect "is excessively long".

He added: "The archetypal enactment of defence for our communities is not the equipped effect team. The archetypal enactment of defence is making definite firearms licensing is done good astatine the beginning.

"That has to beryllium taken much earnestly successful the Highlands, wherever we person the highest level of weapon ownership successful the UK and immoderate of the highest levels of antheral slump successful the UK.

"There's a precise wide statement that this should beryllium done amended and it should beryllium decently resourced."

On March 31, 2023, immoderate 131,253 shotguns were legally held successful Scotland but their usage successful firearms incidents is uncommon and little than immoderate different weapon.

A shotgun certificate lasts 5 years. To get one, applicants person to beryllium they bash not airs a menace to nationalist information and person a bully crushed to ain one.

Certificates are granted by Police Scotland firearms enquiry officers, who are required to interrogation a referee for the applicant, transportation retired inheritance checks and behaviour location visits and information checks.

It is the work of the certificate holder to pass the constabulary if they are diagnosed oregon treated for a applicable aesculapian information specified arsenic intelligence sick health.

Police Scotland tin revoke a certificate if they judge determination is simply a hazard to nationalist information and did truthful 94 times successful 2022/23.

The assemblage astatine the High Court successful Edinburgh heard MacDonald was prone to aggravated outbursts and had a agelong lasting anxiousness astir his health.

In the months starring up to the shootings helium was signed disconnected enactment and visited his GP often with carnal complaints.

Experts who gave grounds astatine the proceedings agreed MacDonald had been showing signs of slump and anxiousness successful the tally up to the attacks.

So far, nary of the circumstances surrounding MacDonald's possession of his shotgun certificate has been made public.

Police Scotland said: "The circumstances relating to this substance are taxable to a Crown-directed probe by the Police Investigation and Review Commissioner (PIRC), and it would truthful beryllium inappropriate to remark further, however, Police Scotland has afloat supported each investigations relating to this issue."

PIRC said it submitted a study connected the circumstances surrounding John McKinnon's decease to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service past November.

A 2nd PIRC study was handed implicit to Police Scotland successful June 2023, examining the engagement of its officers successful the shooting successful Dornie.

PIRC says its reports are confidential "for ineligible reasons."

In England and Wales the policing curate Dame Diana Johnson has announced the instauration of caller mandatory grooming for firearms licencing staff, successful the aftermath of the sidesplitting of 5 radical successful a wide shooting successful Plymouth successful 2021.

All applicants for a firearms licence indispensable present person a integer firearms marker connected their aesculapian records.

The Home Office said Police Scotland has been progressive successful discussions astir the caller grooming with the College of Policing, and "will enactment connected a voluntary ground arsenic observers."

A Scottish authorities spokesperson told BBC Scotland News: "Firearms law, isolated from aerial weapons, is the work of the UK Government.

"Police Scotland’s Firearm and Explosives Licensing squad negociate applications and renewals for firearm and aerial limb licences.

"Mandatory grooming is successful spot and the licence exertion and renewal process uses GP grounds checks arsenic portion of the vetting and appraisal process.

“We volition update these processes if required successful enactment with UK guidance.”

In England and Wales, 5 constabulary forces are trialling a process of compulsory regular interviews with the home partners of certificate holders oregon radical who person applied for one.

The inaugural is supported by Rhiannon Bragg. She was held astatine gunpoint by her erstwhile partner, who began stalking her aft she ended their relationship.

"I deliberation it would beryllium truly utile if the licensing process went from 5 years down to each 3 years," she said.

"So overmuch tin hap wrong a 5 twelvemonth period. Within that clip we've each lived done a planetary pandemic and it's highly recognized that determination person been intelligence wellness issues for galore radical arsenic a effect of that."

In the aftermath of MacDonald's attacks, the Scottish Affairs Committee astatine Westminster recommended changes to weapon regulations, with a peculiar absorption connected intelligence health.