What We Believe
The Shooters Fishers and Farmers Party asserts the right of law-abiding citizens to own and use firearms. We recognise the cultural and economic significance of recreational shooting, hunting and farming. The regulation of firearms should not unduly impede on a law-abiding citizens pursuit of his or her freedoms, business or undertaking.
With Government opting for good headlines over good policy, Australia’s law-abiding firearm community have been burdened with increasingly oppressive regulation while gun crime, particularly in inner city areas, has continued unaffected by new or existing legislation. Gun control is not about guns, it’s about control and an ever-growing restriction of individual liberties.
Good firearms regulation must enhance community safety, whilst not impeding the individual rights and freedoms of law-abiding citizens. Community safety is of the up most importance.
The focus of enforcement must be on criminals who misuse firearms as opposed to wasteful, misdirected over-regulation of law-abiding firearms owners. We recognise the importance of background checking and licensing of intending firearms owners as well as safe storage of firearms.
We do not support “American style gun laws” in NSW.
The National Firearms Agreement 2017 (introduced in 1996) has failed to address the vitally important issue of illegal firearm importation distribution and use in crime. Australia has a mature firearms culture and law-abiding firearms owners should not be treated as criminals in waiting. Any future review of the National Firearms Agreement must be evidence based.
Our Action Plan
- Fight for all law-abiding firearms owners regardless of their chosen discipline or shooting interests.
- Introduce legislation to enforce mandatory minimum sentences for serious crimes committed with a firearm, to be served consecutively, not concurrently.
- Campaign for tougher measures and sentencing of illegal firearms trading.
- Support the introduction of a permanent firearms amnesty so that unregistered or unwanted firearms can be removed from the community without prosecution.
- Establish family and home protection as a genuine reason to own and use a firearm and continue to support measures increasing a person’s right to self-defence.
- Introduce legislation to remove the recording of ammunition sales which serve no purpose in enhancing community safety and create criminal ‘shopping lists’.
- Remove paintball markers from the Firearms Act.
- Continue to drive the establishment of firearms ranges and facilities throughout NSW with an emphasis on increasing disabled access and regional shooting complexes.
- Broaden the successful ‘Safe Shooting Grants’ program established under Shooters MP Hon John Tingle to support and fund shooting and hunting clubs across NSW.
- Introduce legislation and exemptions for past and serving defence force and law enforcement personnel to grant licenses and registration of firearms free of any fees.