Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has been accused of using a handful of high profile incidents to justify a crackdown on air weapons.
Legislation is in the pipeline to require all air gun owners to have a licence and demonstrate they have a legitimate reason for having one.
The measure is part of a long-term commitment by the SNP to crack down on the reckless use of air weapons, which started with the death of two-year-old Andrew Morton, who was shot in the head in Glasgow in 2005.
During questions in the Scottish Parliament yesterday, Mr MacAskill dismissed claims he had not listened to “reasoned argument”.
Orkney Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur said his constituents were concerned that licensing was in response to an urban problem and would have a disproportionate impact in rural areas.
Mr MacAskill said the irresponsible use of air weapons affected both rural and urban areas.
Afterwards, Mr McArthur said it was right to crack down on the inappropriate and dangerous use of air weapons, but said action must be “proportionate and balanced”.
He accused the justice secretary of creating the impression that air gun crime was out of control, despite police figures showing incidents were falling.
“A small number of high profile incidents, where senseless acts have been carried out by individuals with no reason to have an air gun, are used by Mr MacAskill to justify his approach on licensing,” he said.
“Heart-breaking though some of those cases have been, there is a sense that the minister’s response is more about being seen to act tough than actually acting smart.”
Offences involving air weapons have fallen by 75% since 2006-07.
Mr MacAskill said incidents were not falling as quickly as those involving more powerful types of firearms.
He said there were 171 offences in 2012-13, representing 47% of firearms offences, while there were also “many” unreported incidents.
Mr MacAskill said: “We believe the case for licensing has been made.
“It was made by the tragedy of Andrew Morton, it has been made since and will be repeated and directly recounted to me by the SSPCA.”