I WOULD like to set the record straight after reading the article about the firearms amnesty in last week's Bury Times.

The article implied that it was a success, as three illegal firearms had been handed in to police.

Of the alleged firearms listed was one blank-firer, which was perfectly legal, another was an air pistol and the third an old First World War rifle, legally deactivated to Home Office specifications. What threat did any of these present? None was capable of firing live ammunition.

It is time to stop exaggerating the danger of these harmless items. Their recovery is, no doubt, being used to make police statistics look better than they are in reality.

MICHAEL DEAKIN Bury