The Greens, independent MPs and gun safety advocates are urging the Minns Labor government to remove recreational hunting as a “genuine reason” for owning guns in New South Wales as the government prepares to introduce urgent legislation after the Bondi massacre.
Such a move would dramatically reduce the number of gun licences within NSW, but could cause backlash from some shooters.
“New South Wales has a gun problem that we must now confront. We have over 1.1m guns in this state, more than there were prior to the Port Arthur massacre,” Greens MLC Sue Higginson said.
“We must limit the number of guns a person can have, we need stricter controls on who can have them and we need to draw a line in the sand and remove recreational hunting as a genuine reason to own a firearm.”
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Animal Justice Party MLC Emma Hurst and independent Alex Greenwich have circulated a 12-point plan, which includes removing recreational hunting as a reason for owning guns and restrictions on guns being stored at home, except if needed for work.
They also want more controls on guns held by people flagged for domestic violence and have suggested the family court should make a practice note or order that requires police to check the firearms registry and remove any firearms from the perpetrator.
Stephen Bendle, the convener of the Australian Gun Safety Alliance (AGSA), said the category of “recreational hunting” had led to a proliferation of guns in the community and that it was possible to craft new rules which would still allow legitimate control of pests but improve safety.
“Times have changed and the firearms industry can no longer dictate what the rest of us think about firearm safety,” he said.
The Alannah and Madeline Foundation and the AGSA have put a 10-point plan to the premier, Chris Minns who is expected to unveil the government’s plan for “the toughest gun laws in Australia” on the weekend.
NSW parliament will be recalled on Monday and Tuesday to consider the urgent bill.
Minns has indicated changes including limits on the number of guns a person can own, restrictions on magazines that extend the number of shots that can be fired from a shotgun, a citizenship requirement and more stringent licence renewals.
NSW licences are now valid for between two and five years, but the renewal process has not involved a rigorous reassessment of whether a person remains fit and proper to hold a licence.
The state government is also considering abolishing appeals to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal when a gun licence is refused by NSW Police, though it is not yet clear whether this will apply to all reasons for refusal.
The treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, said the issue of who can hold a gun licence was being worked through now, and whether it resulted in recreational hunting being dropped as a genuine reason for owning a gun was “an issue of detail”.
The shadow attorney general, Alister Henskens, expressed some scepticism about the government’s rushed approach.
“The opposition would like to work in a bipartisan way with the government on this important issue, but we have not yet seen any proposed legislation,” he said.
“Some of the changes Chris Minns has suggested around gun licensing is already in the legislation or can be done by regulation, not legislation. Chris Minns must be clear with the opposition and the public what changes he is proposing.”
The leader of the NSW Nationals, Gurmesh Singh, said he would want to see what exemptions will apply to farmers and those living in regional NSW.
“This was a terrorist attack, fuelled by antisemitism. Tackling firearm issues alone won’t stop anti-Jewish terrorist attacks, only eradicating antisemitism will achieve this. We must not conflate these two areas of reform,” he said.
“Our farmers and primary producers must not be disadvantaged by the actions of terrorists,” he said.
