The recent revelation that one of the perpetrators behind the Bondi Junction mass shooting was a registered owner of six firearms has ignited a nationwide push to strengthen gun laws, raising urgent questions about firearm ownership right here in the nation's capital.
A Registry Lost in Paper
While ACT Policing confirms there are approximately 22,500 registered guns and about 7,500 licence holders in the territory, understanding where these weapons are concentrated is nearly impossible. The ACT Firearms Registry operates on a "largely paper-based" system, a relic that severely limits analysis of gun ownership trends across Canberra's suburbs.
This means that, despite having roughly one licensee for every 100 Canberrans, authorities cannot easily provide a suburb-by-suburb breakdown of firearm density. An ACT Policing spokesman stated that compiling such specific data would require a manual review of each licensee and registered firearm, a task too burdensome under the current system.
The Long Road to Digital Clarity
Canberrans may not get a clear picture of local gun ownership for another two years. The registry is undergoing a critical upgrade to align with the forthcoming National Firearms Register requirements set for 2028. Until this digital transformation is complete, detailed insights into licence categories—such as dealing, collecting, recreational hunting, vermin control, and sports shooting—remain locked away in filing cabinets.
The ACT government is on a parallel timeline, reviewing laws around possessing blueprints for 3D-printed guns. This delay contributes to the territory's poor performance in national rankings. The Australia Institute recently labelled the ACT as the worst-performing jurisdiction on regulatory measures, citing weak limits on firearm numbers per person and poor data availability.
Legal Ownership and the Shadow Market
Unlike some states, the ACT places no legislated cap on the number of firearms a licensed individual can own, though category restrictions apply. A licence holder can possess weapons across multiple categories, a practice consistent with other Australian jurisdictions. Rifles and shotguns are the most commonly registered types in Canberra.
However, the legal market is just one part of the story. Police admit it is "very difficult" to estimate the number of unregistered or illegal guns circulating in the ACT. National figures from the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission offer a grim perspective, conservatively estimating 250,000 longarms and 10,000 handguns in the country's illegal domestic market.
Members of the local shooting community acknowledge that reviewing laws post-Bondi is reasonable. However, they warn that imposing heavy limits on the number of firearms an individual can own could disproportionately impact sport shooters and farmers, for whom multiple specialised firearms are tools of their trade or sport.
Heightened Security and Rising Tensions
In the wake of the Bondi attack, which a radicalisation expert noted resulted in the highest terrorism-related casualties on record in Australia with 16 killed, ACT Policing has increased patrols around Jewish buildings as a precaution.
This move follows stark warnings from local Jewish community leader Athol Morris, who predicted a similar atrocity could occur in Canberra. ACT Policing has begun formally tracking alleged anti-Semitic incidents, recording 61 reports between July 1, 2024, and September 30, 2025. Most involved graffiti, stickers, verbal abuse, and offensive comments.
The spokesman noted these figures reflect an "increased focus on this issue and dedicated reporting", as antisemitism is not a specified crime type in their records. Comparing current data with previous years would, like the gun registry, require a laborious manual search, highlighting another area where outdated systems hinder a full understanding of community safety risks.
