Firearms

Newcastle shootings should halt a further relaxation of NSW gun laws

aorme — 2010-07-09T03:02:02Z

Ms Rhiannon also warned the government off backing a Shooters Party bill introduced this month, with the leave of the government, which would further relax gun laws in NSW.

"The Mayfield tragedy would have been less likely if the government had moved to ban semi-automatic pistols," Ms Rhiannon said.

"Semi-automatic pistols are easy to conceal and should have been banned in the aftermath of the Port Arthur massacre, when semi-automatic long arms were prohibited.

"The major parties are hungry for law and order announcements, but silent on the issue of gun control.

"NSW was the first state to roll back uniform gun laws introduced after the Port Arthur massacre.

"In early June the Keneally government gave the Shooters Party leave to introduce a bill that if passed will further weaken gun laws in this state.

"The new Shooters Bill contains a number of changes to gun laws. It includes reducing licensing disqualification from 10 to five years following domestic violence orders and removing the 28-day waiting period to obtain additional firearms.

"The government has been locked in an unsavoury tryst with the Shooters Party, allowing existing gun laws to be whittled away.

"Public safety should not be compromised by any deals Labor wishes to make with the Shooters Party to gain an extra two votes' support in the NSW Upper House.

"The NSW government's relationship with the gun lobby is unsavoury and compromises what should be a tough approach to gun ownership in this state," Ms Rhiannon said.

For more information: 0427 861 568

A summary of the Shooters Party Firearms Legislation Amendment Bill 2010 is here

Greens' bill abolishes Game Council and ends hunting state forests, national parks

aorme — 2010-06-24T01:10:44Z

The Game and Feral Animal Control Repeal Bill 2010 is now available.

"Feral animals are a significant environmental problem in Australia but the Game Council, set up as a favour by the Labor Party to the Shooters Party to shore up their vote, is a bankrupt vehicle for managing invasive species," Ms Rhiannon said.

"The more than $11 million in public funding and millions in loans spent propping up the Game Council since 2002 would be better spent developing an evidenced based, strategic plan using professionals to tackle invasive species.

"The Game Council was set up to be self funding, yet the Auditor General has noted its ongoing financial difficulties, with the government being forced to prop it up with loans and additional recurrent funding to manage ongoing debt problems.

"Former Premier Bob Carr's establishment of the Game Council in 2002 was an act of unashamed capitulation to the gun and hunting lobbies, legitimising recreational animal cruelty while risking an increase in feral animal populations.

"The Greens Bill also prohibits recreational hunting in state forests, national parks and Crown Land.

"As part of the deal making between Labor and the Shooters Party, NSW's state forests have been lately opened up to recreational shooters, risking public safety.

"There is still currently a Shooters Party private members bill before parliament which if passed would broaden where recreational shooters can hunt to include national parks.

"The NSW government has agreed to various demands by the Shooters Party for changes to gun ownership laws in recent years and there is no guarantee that shooting in national parks will not be next on the list.

"In the interests of the environment and good government NSW Labor should support the Greens' bill to abolish the Game Council and ensure the professional and scientific management of invasive species in NSW," Ms Rhiannon said.

For more information - 9230 3551, 0427 861 568

Summary of Firearms Legislation Amendment Bill 2010

aorme — 2010-06-11T00:50:48Z

Heavily armed security guards alarm Greens

leerhiannon — 2010-06-07T06:57:58Z

Read the article in its original context here:http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/heavily-armed-security-guards-alarm-greens-20100311-q1l7.html

NEW regulations allowing security guards to carry high-calibre handguns and shotguns is a weakening of gun control that will see more firearms ending up in criminal hands, the NSW Greens say.

The amendment to state firearms legislation, quietly introduced by the Labor government before Christmas, gives the NSW Police Commissioner the power to authorise security guards to carry prohibited firearms.

This week the Greens MP Lee Rhiannon attempted to have the regulation overturned in Parliament, but the motion was voted down by Labor, the Liberals and Nationals, the Christian Democrats and the two Shooters' Party members.

Ms Rhiannon accused the Keneally government of compromising public safety in order to win back the support of the Shooters' Party.

The government largely lost control of the Legislative Council last year after it failed to back the Shooters' proposed legislation to allow guns in national parks. As a result, the opposition and the crossbenches succeeded in forcing the government to table damaging papers in a range of areas from the M4 East project to the Tillegra dam and the Hurlstone Agricultural College.

''This debate revealed that Labor is still trying to win favours from the Shooters' MPs, and the Coalition is no better,'' Ms Rhiannon said.

''They beat the law and order drum but they stand by while gun control measures are watered down.''

NSW has experienced a growing trend of criminals hijacking armoured vans and stealing private security guards' weapons to sell on the black market or use in crimes.

In 2008-09, 585 firearms were stolen in NSW, an increase of 109 on the previous year. Less than 70 per cent are recovered by police.

A spokeswoman for the Minister for Police, Michael Daley, said most of the firearms used by security guards were for the ''cash-in-transit sector'', such as ATM and cash collection services. Any company or guard licensed to use firearms must undergo weapons training and strict probity checks, she said.

The opposition police spokesman, Michael Gallacher, said he sided with the government because he was satisfied that violent criminals, drug dealers and sex offenders would not be given access to firearms under the new rules.

The Shooters' Party MP Robert Brown said: ''Provided the licensing and selection of security guards is controlled tightly, whether they carry a high-powered weapon … is probably of very little consequence to the average citizen in this state.''

However, the president of Gun Control Australia, John Crook, said the decision to allow security guards to carry shotguns was ''disgraceful and irresponsible''.

''We know that quite a number of handguns are lost or stolen from security guards and this means it's more likely that firearms will get into criminal hands,'' he said.

Bryan de Caires, of the Australian Security Industry Association, said the new rules put the 2000 security guards with firearms licences on par with police in regards to the type of weapons they could carry.

The number of security personnel outnumbered police by more than two-to-one in Australia.

''It's not a push to arm-up the industry, it's aimed at a specific group, the cash-in-transit industry, who wanted parity with the police,'' Mr de Caires said.

Warning over gun legislation debate

leerhiannon — 2010-06-15T06:34:11Z

Read article in its original context here:

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/warning-over-gun-legislation-debate-20100606-xn8d.html

THE National Coalition for Gun Control says increasing pressure on the NSW government may force it into legislative negotiations with the Shooters Party, which will weaken gun control.

Particularly alarming, it says, are moves to reduce licensing disqualification from 10 to five years following domestic violence orders, and overturning the automatic removal of domestic violence offenders' firearms to be at the police's discretion.

The bill also removes the 28-day waiting period to obtain additional firearms.

The moves are part of the Firearms Legislation Amendment Bill 2010 introduced last Thursday by a Shooters Party MP, Roy Smith.

''If the proposed changes to the firearm laws get support it will absolutely destroy the safety measures put in place after the Port Arthur massacre,'' said Samantha Lee, from the National Coalition for Gun Control.

Ms Lee said the government had shown it was ''willing to water down the gun laws'' with its separate Weapons and Firearms Legislation Amendment Bill 2010, agreed to in the Legislative Assembly on Friday.

It makes the registration of replica and imitation firearms unnecessary, removing them from the prohibited firearms list.

While Ms Lee said she thought it unlikely the government would agree to all parts of the Shooters Party bill, she is concerned about what might be agreed to in the interest of politics.

''It's such a strange time in NSW politics it's hard to know,'' she said, ''particularly when the government's under pressure like the Labor party, and they need to pass bills in the Upper House.''

A Greens MP, Lee Rhiannon, said the relationship between the government and the Shooters Party had been volatile, but there was some crucial legislation coming up this week, such as the National Parks and Wildlife Amendment Bill, where it would need its support. Ms Rhiannon said she didn't think the government would support the firearms bill but that allowing it to be introduced last week may have been part of negotiations.

''It's a possibility, and a really big worry … I certainly see it as highly irresponsible of the government to even allow them to do that second reading,'' she said.

''It's an issue of public safety and what they're doing here is winding back gun control laws in a really worrying way.''

Other measures in the bill include allowing children under 12 to use air rifles without a minors' permit, and deregulating air rifle registration.

Ms Lee said the changes to domestic violence offender regulations were particularly worrying. ''You want to take the firearm out of the scenario immediately … it puts women in a lot of danger,'' she said.

A spokeswoman for the Police Minister, Michael Daley, said the government was examining the bill with recommendations from NSW Police. A spokeswoman for the Premier said the ''bill is yet to be considered by cabinet''.

Labor and Shooters move to relax NSW gun laws as news of Cumbrian massacre breaks

aorme — 2010-06-29T00:35:37Z

This follows the passing of a government weapons bill through the Upper House late last night that loosens restrictions on imitation firearms, which have been recently used in criminal incidents like drive by shootings.

The Shooters also won the support today of Labor and the Coalition for a marine parks bill to create a moratorium on additional marine parks and the expansion of sanctuary zones.

"It shows gross insensitivity on the government's part to support an urgent motion by the Shooters Party to bring on their Firearms Legislation Amendment Bill which considerably relaxes gun control laws on the day of the Cumbrian massacre," Ms Rhiannon said.

"This suggests that the government has been working behind the scenes to shore up the support of the Shooters Party by giving its MPs an opportunity to change gun laws.

"As Labor does not have a majority in the Upper House, the government often relies on the Shooters' votes to pass unpopular legislation and defeat Coalition and Greens' motions.

"The Greens are still analysing the reach of the Shooters Party Bill. At first glance it is clear this bill is a significant rolling back of gun laws introduced after a series of massacres. If this bill becomes law public safety will be compromised.

The Firearms Legislation Amendment Bill includes measures to:

§ reduce the disqualification period for those who have been subject to an AVO with being issued with a firearm from 10 to 5 years

§ removes the need to register or have a permit to acquire an air rifle and allow children under 12 to use air rifles at a shooting range

§ waters down the requirements for pistol clubs to check that an applicant for a pistol has adequate places to safely store pistols

§ removes the offence for carrying or possessing a firearm in a national park, if it is not loaded and carried while travelling on a vehicle

§ provides the Police Commissioner with the discretion not to refuse a gun licence or permit where the a person had previously been convicted of certain criminal offences (previously refusal was mandatory)

§ makes it more difficult for the Commissioner to order a person to surrender a firearm when it has been suspended or revoked.

§ provides farmers with access to pump action shotguns, self-loading shotguns and rimfire rifles to shoot on their own farms or other farms with the permission of the owner/occupier.

For more information: 9230 3551, 0427 861 568

Labor must reject Shooters push to weaken gun laws

aorme — 2010-06-02T22:20:56Z

"The Shooters Party amendments weaken NSW gun control laws and should be rejected by Labor and the Coalition," Ms Rhiannon said.

"The Shooters proposed Weapons Prohibition Regulation would remove the need to obtain a permit for a detachable firearm magazine.

"The present system restricts access to these dangerous devices to a few occupations.

"Adding one of these magazines to some firearms can create a military-style assault weapon.

"This would be a serious set back to gun control and public safety. The NSW government and opposition must not back the Shooters Party push to expand access to detachable magazines.

"These were critical components of the weapons used in the 1999 Columbine massacre and at Virginia Tech in 2007 when all up 44 people were murdered.

"Since the falling out between the Shooters MPs and Labor over a proposal to allow hunting in National Parks the government has struggled to find the numbers in the NSW Upper House on some key issues.

"If Labor rolls over to the Shooters demand for a substantial weakening of gun control laws, it will certainly look like a new deal has been struck.

"Tragically we gained gun control laws in this state and nationally after a series of massacres.

"To allow a political party whose key objective is to make it easier to obtain and use firearms to dictate the laws governing gun access is wrong," Ms Rhiannon said.

For more information: 9230 3551, 0427 861 568

Orphan deer exposes irresponsible shooting programs

leerhiannon — 2010-07-09T03:53:12Z

(Daily Telegraph, page 1, http://bit.ly/aYXi1g)

"When non-professional shooters are used to cull animals, poor practices can go undetected," Ms Rhiannon said.

"Animal welfare and public safety are being put at risk by the cowboy operations of recreational shooters in the Illawarra area.

"The NSW government's backing of the Game Council implies that shooting is the way to control feral animals.

"This policy is becoming increasingly discredited due to safety concerns, animal cruelty issues and the increase in feral animal numbers.

"We don't know exactly what happened to the fawn's mother but it is unsurprising locals have linked this orphaned fawn with the activities of recreational shooters.

"The failure to have animal welfare groups supervise culls, as required in professional operations, could well be linked to this sad story.

"This fawn has suffered greatly from losing its mother. The government needs to get its priorities right and ensure that any culling programs do not put orphaned animals at further risk.

"The NSW government has been too willing to meet the wishes of the Shooters Party by allowing the expansion of recreational shooting. This orphaned fawn could well be the sorry end to one of those hunting expeditions," Ms Rhiannon said.

For more information: 0427 861 568

Gun laws weakened in NSW

susie — 2010-03-12T05:04:39Z

One of the regulations concerns licensing for international visitors visiting NSW for shooting competitions, and exempts them from requiring a permit for NSW as long as they have one from another state. The main problem with this regulation was that it was open-ended, allowing the visitor to possess and carry a firearm in NSW for an indeterminate period before and after the competition.

The more contentious regulation concerns a serious weakening of NSW's gun ownership laws. It allows security guards with gun licences to obtain, carry and use certain shotguns and high-powered pistols. The same types of pistols so tragically used in the Dunblane Primary School massacre in Scotland in 1996 and the fatal shootings at Monash University in 2002.

The debate on the issue was extremely disappointing, with none of the speakers from Labor or the Liberals actually referring to the issues brought into question. They focussed on minor aspects of the regulation and wouldn't engage with the issue of having more high-powered weapons in circulation.

During the debate, Shooters' Party MP Robert Brown stated "whether (security guards) carry a high-powered weapon is probably of very little consequence to the average citizen in this state."

Unsurprisingly, I disagree with this completely.

It doesn't take a genius to work out the correlation between having more high-powered weapons in circulation, whether to registered gun owners or not, and those weapons ending up on the black market.

Theft of firearms is on the rise across Australia, and particularly in NSW. A report by the Australian Institute of Criminology showed that 1,712 firearms were reported stolen in Australia between 2007 and 2008. This was an increase of close to two hundred from the previous year. Almost a quarter of these thefts occurred in NSW.

More recently, on October 20, 2009, 12 semi-automatic high-powered glock handguns were stolen from security firm Westsure in Morley, WA. Over a period of six weeks, from November to December 2009, 18 firearms were stolen from private residences in Mt Isa in Queensland.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported on January 13 of this year that in NSW there is a growing trend for criminals robbing armoured vans and stealing the guns of the private security guards.

It is estimated that less than 70 per cent of stolen firearms are recovered by police and that the majority of them make their way onto the black market.

But NSW Labor and the Shooters Party are not to be persuaded by research or statistics. You have to wonder where they think criminal organisation get weapons from - do they imagine a shady blacksmith's forge hammering out high-callibred weapons long into the night?

We have to wonder why Labor would introduce regulations weakening NSW's gun ownership laws, and why the Opposition would support it. The answer is unfortunately likely to be to be in the hope of winning the support of the Shooters Party MPs in the NSW Upper House.

The NSW government lost this support last year when they decided not to back the Shooters Party legislation to allow recreational hunting in National Parks. Like a child throwing a tantrum when they don't get their own way, the Shooters Party responded by refusing to support any government legislation, and forced the government to table damaging papers in a number of areas, like the M4 East project.

The Liberals are eyeing off a majority of some sort in next year's state election. Their behaviour in parliament suggests they may also be willing to placate the gun lobby.

You can read the Hansard of the full debate here:

For more information about my work in the firearms portfolio see here:

Read the full SMH article reporting the disallowances here:

NSW government wooing Shooters Party MPs with weaker firearms regulations

susie — 2010-07-09T04:13:55Z

SMH, page 4 today.

The two firearms regulations allow security guards with firearms licenses to use prohibited pistols and shotguns, and grant open-ended firearms licenses to international visitors.

"Labor is still trying to win favours from the Shooters MPs. The Coalition is no better. They are clearly hoping to keep the Shooters on side in the lead up to the 2011 election," said Ms Rhiannon.

"These new firearms regulations were gazetted last December, shortly after Labor's deal with the Shooters Party fell over.

"Labor and the Coalition beat the law and order drum but they stand by while gun control measures are watered down.

"The Government should be placing public safety ahead of its deals with the Shooters Party.

"Public safety has been steadily compromised in NSW because Labor has been unwilling to take on the shooters lobby and tighten gun control laws.

"The government should place public safety ahead of its deals with the two Shooters MPs.

"Our community will not be made safer by watering down firearms laws to more heavily arm security guards.

"Security guards could become the target of gun theft, increasing the number of illegal weapons in the community. Last year firearms theft rose by almost 20 per cent in NSW.

"At a time when gun theft is on the rise, when we want to keep guns out of our community, we should be tightening regulations, not loosening them.

"There can be no justification for relaxing NSW's firearms laws," said Ms Rhiannon.

For information: Lee Rhiannon - 0427 861 568