Firearm owners found to have too many weapons under a new regime being hashed out by the state and territories will be forced to forfeit their guns or have them bought back by the government, Anthony Albanese has revealed.
The Prime Minister announced on Friday plans for the biggest firearms buyback since the Port Arthur massacre in 1996.
The scheme is a key backbone for reforms currently being worked on by NSW Premier Chris Minns and WA Premier Roger Cook along with Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke and state and territory police ministers.
Mr Albanese said the scheme would see the Commonwealth purchasing “surplus, newly banned and illegal firearms”.
“Australia’s gun laws were substantially reformed last after the Port Arthur tragedy. The terrible events at Bondi show we need to get more guns off our streets,” he said.
Sajid Akram had legal possession of six firearms when he was shot and killed by police.
His son, Naveed, did not have a firearms license and is in custody having been charged with a string of offences, including murder.
“There’s no reason why someone in that situation needed that many guns,” Mr Albanese said.
“There are now more than four million firearms in Australia – more than at the time of the Port Arthur massacre nearly 30 years ago.”
Mr Albanese said the funding would be done on a 50-50 basis with the states and territories, who will be responsible for collection, processing, or payment.
The AFP will then destroy the firearms.
“We expect hundreds of thousands of firearms will be collected and destroyed through this scheme,” Mr Albanese said.
The Prime Minister admitted the proposal was “consistent with the approach taken in 1996” by the Howard government following the Port Arthur massacre.
The Liberal leader lead the government’s response to the horrific killing, which include stricter licensing, a prohibition of semiautomatic weapons, and safe storage requirements – all key pillars of the current firearm legislation.
Critically, there was also a mandatory buyback scheme.
The scheme was funded by a special levy and was mandatory for newly-illegal firearms.
On Friday, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said “what’s now being negotiated with the states in terms of what those numbers should be on” the number of firearms.
“But, effectively, if it becomes illegal to be holding the number of firearms that you hold, then at that point, you have to dispose of it, and the buyback scheme is the way that that would happen,” he said.
NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley announced on Friday under that state’s reforms recreational firearm owners would be restricted to four weapons, whiles sports shooters and landowners will be limited to 10.
A permanent gun amnesty has also been in-place since July 2021, and until June 2024 had resulted in almost 41,000 firearms and weapons being surrendered.
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