Western Australia is set to become the first jurisdiction in the country to limit the number of guns someone can own under proposed firearm law reforms.
The Firearm Act review would see recreational shooters limited to owning five guns and farmers restricted to 10.
Competitive shooters will also be limited to 10 firearms but can apply to own more if they are competing at a national or international level.
Impacted firearm licence holders would be required to dispose of excess guns before the laws come into effect.
Disposal can be done through surrendering the guns under amnesty, selling them through a licensed WA dealer, or via a state government-funded buyback scheme.
Police Minister Paul Papalia said it would be up to those who own more guns than the new laws allow to choose which firearms they kept and which they dispose of to be within limits.
Currently there are 360,916 licensed firearms in WA, which is more than double the amount in the state in 2009.
It is estimated the law change would see about 13,000 guns disposed of, but the government expects most licence holders will not be impacted.
For those who are affected, the WA government has committed to funding a voluntary buyback scheme.
The value of compensation for surrendered guns would not be negotiable but will be calculated based on the type of firearm and when it was first licensed in Western Australia.
There will be no compensation paid for ammunition or accessories surrendered with firearms.
The government would also not pay for any unlicensed guns, but they can be surrendered under amnesty legislation.
The president of the Shooters Union, Graham Park, slammed the proposal to restrict the number of firearms owned, describing it as “totally unreasonable”.
“In a relatively free Western society, we’ve normally been guided by the safety factor, if you’re not doing any harm with it, we leave you alone.
WAFarmers CEO Trevor Whittington said the 10-weapon limit was acceptable.
“We’ve consulted with our members and the feedback is 10 is a reasonable number to have,” he said.
“We applaud the WA government, and Police Minister Paul Papalia in particular, for their single-mindedness in ensuring that firearms possession and use remains a privilege that is conditional on public safety,” group spokesperson Stephen Bendle said.
But a spokesperson for the WA Firearms Community Alliance, which represents the state’s gun traders, recreational shooters and licensed owners, described the limits as “arbitrary” with “no evidence to suggest they have any meaning”.
(ABC)
