Shambles, my personal information about Britain is well out of date, but 30 years ago, deer in most of Britain were 'stalked,' not 'hunted.' The terminology was used by the people who did it, because they mostly stalked over open moorland, not by waiting by a forest clearing. Long wet crawls upwind through sopping heather, long shots at shy animals. Rifle business without a doubt.
It has probably changed now.

When I was growing up there, carrying a gun (just carrying, not even presenting) in the pursuance of a crime (terminology something like that) meant an legislated automatic DOUBLING of the sentence. Does this still happen? Gun crime was rare then. Favoured weapon was a pick-axe handle.....

Here in NZ a good deal of gun crime involves stolen, cut-down sporting weapons, but there are military and hand weapons used, usually by career criminals. We also have had instances of gun-nuts running with their 'collectors weapons.'