National approach to gun control at risk of collapse: report

A report released by Gun Control Australia shows that after two decades of political pressure Australia's gun laws are in decline.

Australia's national approach to gun control is at risk of collapsing after 20 years of political pressure and deal-making eroded firearm laws, according to a new report.

The Gun Control Australia (GCA) report claims regulations have been diluted and no state or territory complies with the National Firearms Agreement, introduced in 1996 following the Port Arthur massacre.

NSW, Queensland and Western Australia are named as the jurisdictions where gun control measures have been most watered down.

GCA chair Samantha Lee says the 1996 laws made Australia a safer place, but the country now faces a "concerning" future.

"With gun numbers increasing, gun laws eroding and the gun lobby on the rise, the situation is not looking good," she said in a statement on Thursday.
No state had emerged unscathed from years of political pressure, Ms Lee added.

"Although many parts of our laws remain intact, the ongoing steady weakening of our laws will cause the national approach to collapse."

Report author Adjunct Associate Professor Philip Alpers, from the University of Sydney, found a domino effect between states when gun laws are weakened.

The major erosions include allowing minors to possess and use firearms even without a permit, the removal of a cooling-off period when acquiring a second or subsequent hunting rifles and allowing members of the public to shoot unlicensed at gun clubs.

The report also highlights unlimited possession of ammunition and the weakening of "genuine reason" restrictions when obtaining a hunting licence as concerns.
The lobby group is calling on the prime minister to put the issue on the agenda at Thursday's COAG meeting in Canberra.

The National Firearms Agreement resulted in restricted legal possession of automatic and semi-automatic firearms, among other provisions.

It committed all states to a registration scheme and was implemented in stages, including a 12-month national amnesty and compensation buyback scheme.

A similar amnesty held this year, but without compensation offers, resulted in 28,000 firearms being handed in over three months.

However, it's estimated there are still 600,000 firearms on the street, prompting opposition leader Bill Shorten to call for an extension of the gun amnesty.

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Published 5 October 2017 10:22am
Updated 5 October 2017 10:18pm


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