While I agree we will never see the majority of people armed here there are still significant numbers held mostly in the rural areas, the top document in this link has the relevant numbers…
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... 12-to-2013
As of 2013 there were 146,000 firearm certificate holders (not shotgun) accounting for some 500,000 guns which is an approx 3.5 guns per certificate average.
As of 2013 there were 570,000 Shotgun Certificate holders with an average of 2.3 guns each.
These figures obviously do not cover the unknown numbers of illegal guns in circulation held by criminals.
It also does not cover those guns that are exempt because they are antique.
As a percentage of the UK population, even if all certificate holders chose to share their guns with people after a SHTF event, which is highly unlikely, the numbers are still very small around 1% but the highest concentration of guns is in rural areas which is where many of you are intending to head if it all goes south.
Interesting to note is the highest concentrations per head of population are Devon & Cornwall, Thames Valley & West Mercia, & the lowest are Merseyside, The Met & City of London.
Also, while ammunition once assembled is regulated the component parts are not, so its possible to store high numbers of these without regulation & assemble them as & when required, meaning that those with the capability to make their own ammo post SHTF will have a working firearm far longer than those that do not.
Also worth mentioning are the antique flintlocks, these are only licensed in the UK if you intend to use them for target shooting, its possible to own them as collectors pieces without a certificate, the recipe for black powder has been known for centuries & lead casting of round ball is not rocket science, the chances are that some of these old pieces could be resurrected in a time of need.
So if your plan post SHTF is to raid the countryside its quite possible you may meet armed resistance from folks already out there…
Wf