A national firearms registry will not work unless each state and territory government updates their “outdated” and often “paper-based” registry systems, warn gun advocates.
In February National Cabinet agreed to Australia-wide firearms register to counter crimes such as the murders of two police officers by a trio that included former Walgett school principal Nathaniel Train.
As it stands, Law enforcement agencies are currently relying mainly on state-level gun registers, and there is an existing national database called the Australian Firearms Information Network but the proposed new registry would offer something different – real-time access borders information about firearm licence holders.
Beyond that, the detail of how the register would work is still up in the air, and a lack of certainty is making some in the guns industry nervous – and frustrated…