SUSSEX Police issued more than 3,000 shotgun licences in the past year, a freedom of information request has revealed.

The figures come after a shotgun was fired in public in Brighton last week, leading to a nine-day manhunt.

Gun licences are issued by local police forces. Sussex Police said they granted 2,790 shotgun licences between July 16, 2018 and the same date this year.

They also issued 245 visitors shotgun licences and 1,534 firearms licences.

To possess, buy, or acquire a shotgun, applicants need a shotgun certificate. They must provide a passport photo, a reference, and pay a fee set by the local police force. A certificate usually lasts five years.

The police can refuse permission for a certificate under the Firearms Act if they think applicants do not have a good reason to have a shotgun.

A certificate is also needed to buy ammunition.

There is no lower age limit for obtaining a shotgun certificate, and there are more than 3,500 children and teenagers with one in England and Wales.

In the past children as young as seven have been granted one.

Some firearms are completely prohibited, while others do not require a licence.

If they are not kept to be fired, antique shotguns with flintlock, matchlock and percussion cap firing mechanisms do not normally need to be certified.