The New South Wales Government is injecting $39.3 million into the state's Firearms Registry as it accelerates the implementation of sweeping gun law reforms introduced following the Bondi Beach terror attack. The funding package, announced on Saturday, will finance 22 additional registry staff and major system upgrades to support what has been described as the toughest firearms reforms in the country.
The reforms became law on Christmas Eve after the December 14 antisemitic terror attack at Bondi Beach, where 15 people were killed and 39 others injured at a Hanukkah event. Under the changes, firearm licence periods will be reduced from five years to two, checks on licence holders will be strengthened, and a full audit of existing firearm licences will be conducted. The government also plans to cap the number of firearms a person can own.
The extra funding will support expanded 'genuine reason' checks for firearm ownership, stricter reporting obligations for clubs and licence holders, and new application requirements, including Australian citizenship checks.
Minister for Police and Counter-terrorism Yasmin Catley said the latest funding injection would ensure the registry had the resources needed to enforce the tougher laws. 'Today we are backing Australia's toughest firearms reforms with the resources needed to make it happen,' Catley said. 'This $39.3 million investment will deliver 22 extra staff for the Firearms Registry so these reforms can be implemented - strengthening checks, improving oversight and supporting the practical work needed to reduce risk across the state.'
'We introduced the toughest gun law reforms in a generation following the worst terror attack our country has seen and today we are making sure the system has the people and capacity to deliver them,' she added.
The announcement comes more than a week after the federal government accepted all 14 recommendations from the royal commission into the Bondi attack, including calls for nationally consistent gun laws and a national gun buyback scheme. The announcement also comes amid a boom in firearm licence applications following the introduction of the tougher laws. As previously revealed by 7NEWS, applications for new firearm licences jumped 71 per cent in the month after the attack compared to the previous year, while applications for some semi-automatic weapons increased by 1400 per cent.
