A COMPANY selling air rifles through the post was criticised by the advertising watchdog today.

York-based Blue Moon Trading advertised a rifle and "500 ammo free" in an East Yorkshire newspaper for £49.95, plus £7.50 postage and packing.

The advert showed a picture of an air rifle with the claims "ultimate pest controller" and "max legal limit". It said the offer was for "over-18s only".

A member of the public who saw the advert branded it "irresponsible" and "likely to encourage people to order or use the gun for antisocial purposes".

The person, who complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), also asked if the gun had been advertised legally and whether the company did enough to ensure it could not be sold to under-18s.

But the owner of Blue Moon Trading today hit back at critics and insisted the advert "conformed to all British laws". Stuart Sykes, 57, who has run the Goodramgate target sport site for three years with his wife, Linda, told the Evening Press: "This all complete and utter nonsense."

He said there had been one complaint about the advert, from someone who he said had a personal mission against guns.

Mr Sykes, who lives in Huntington Road, York, said it was beyond him why this person's concern had been singled out.

"There are dozens more companies doing exactly what we did, but on a much bigger scale."

Mr Sykes said he "totally disagreed" with the ASA's verdict that the advert was "irresponsible".

The advert had now been withdrawn. "It wasn't worth the hassle," said Mr Sykes, who claimed air guns were essential for vermin control, especially in a place like York. Anyone calling for a ban on guns, he said, should "grow up".

The advert row comes amid heightened concerns about the roles guns play in British society after a series of shock shootings.

Publishers of the Bridlington Free Press, where the controversial advert appeared, said the paper carried the promotion for more than 18 months, but had recently received several complaints, including one from the local police.

The ASA ruled that referring to the gun as an "ultimate pest controller" and of the "max legal limit" was "irresponsible" and "trivialised a serious social problem".

Some guns did not require a firearms certificate, but the watchdog felt Blue Moon Trading had not taken adequate measures to ensure the rifle in the advert was sold only to over-18s.

Updated: 11:04 Wednesday, October 08, 2003