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QUEENSLAND: gun clubs slated for ‘nightclub’ ID rules

The Queensland Government is proposing to bring in late-night
pub rules for gun clubs – to address a problem that doesn’t exist

Prefer the Gun News Australia version?

Watch the podcast on this matter- click the image below.

The proposal

RELENTLESS DIGGING by Politics Reloaded has revealed that the Queensland Government is proposing to include late-night pub style measures in gun clubs – without any apparent need to do so.

Queensland wants ID checks for visitors

Documents from the Federal Attorney Generals Department reveal that the Queensland Government is looking to require gun clubs to use “Safe Night” scanners to check non-licensed individuals “prior to” entering a range.

From documents obtained by Politics Reloaded

The vivid imagination

Safe Night is ID scanning technology that licensed venues that trade after midnight to ensure people who gain entry are not on a banned list run by Queensland Police.

The Queensland Government says of the Safe Night scanners:

“They are a Queensland Government initiative to reduce late-night drug and alcohol-related violence.”

In fact the scanners are meant to apply to venues that operate past midnight – but gun clubs don’t operate past midnight, and many don’t even have bars.

Scanners used at licensed venues

The unnecessary cost

The costs of the scanners themselves are significant.

In addition, only licensed crowd controllers are allowed to operate the scanners. The scanners also comes with ongoing software subscription costs.

One Queensland business estimated the cost to them was $80,000 a year including staff costs.

Plus clubs would need online access to the Queensland’s ‘banned’ list.

Imposing the scanners means that if a person can’t issue a government issued ID, then the club may need to refuse entry. That means having to turn juniors who want to take up the sport, away.

An ABC article article says that the scanners have led to “a sharp drop in patronage” at bars where they are installed.

The ‘un-Australian’ bottom line

As one Surfers Paradise bar said, the scanners are as ‘stupid’ and ‘un-Australian’. We agree.

However, we reckon the proposal tabled at the FWPWG won’t proceed because of the problems we’ve outlined – but it should never have seen the light of day.

Followers will remember the interview we had with the Muckadilla Rifle Club, which at one stage, had just two members. How would it be possible for them to comply – and why should they?

The fact this night club idea was considered strong enough to put on the national table, tells us just how broken the consultation model with shooting organisations is.

The registries’ undisciplined forum

The Safe Night fiasco comes as part of a response to a Freedom-of-Information (known as Right-To-Information in Qld) request submitted by Politics Reloaded late last year.

That request dives into the policy discussions of the Firearms and Weapons Policy Working Group.

The group – or FWPWG – is the national forum of our registries who meet twice a year.

Their mandate is to improve consistency between jurisdictions, however much of their output seems to more about creating barriers than achieving better outcomes.

The FWPWG seems to have such a deep lack of discipline, that even idiotic thought bubbles such as that tabled by Queensland will get entertained – and then hidden from public view.

Other shooting organisations have tried and tried to break through the FWPWG’s veil of secrecy but failed. Until now.

Politics Reloaded is now sifting through hundreds of pages of policy discussions that we will be bringing to you. Appeals we have lodged mean that there will be more.

Registry link with the audit office

Keen observers will note that item tabled at the FWPWG was under the title of “Queensland Audit Office”, yet presented by an inspector.

While we’re not exactly sure why, we do note that the office did an audit of the firearms registry in 2020 into it’s effectiveness – and can only surmise that this included QPol’s ‘wishlist’ to spend more money on a new registry. All in the name of efficiency.

That office’s report does float the possibility of a scanning system with some spurious language at page 17, however it did not end up as a recommendation.

Why not put this on your club’s noticeboard?

August 25, 2025
REGISTRY SMOKESCREEN: We probe the gun policy discussions at national level

We’ve launched a legal challenge to a refusal by our registries
to come clean on what they’re up to on the national stage.

Prefer the Gun News Australia version?

Watch the full interview – click the image below.

The FOI long game

AFTER NEARLY A YEAR of battling bureaucracy, Politics Reloaded is on the verge of uncovering what new gun laws and policies our nation’s firearm registry managers are pushing for.

These meetings, under the federal government’s Firearms and Weapons Policy Working Group (FWPWG), have long raised concerns among shooting organisations because of the secrecy that surrounds this group.

The firearms policy group

The FWPWG includes representatives from all Australian states and territories, as well as federal agencies such as the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, the Australian Federal Police, the Australian Institute of Criminology, the Department of Home Affairs, and the Defence Export Control Office.

The only information that the group publishes is that its primary objective is to facilitate improved national consistency in response to firearm and weapon issues.

While similar groups exist among senior public officials in other portfolios, this one lacks any form of transparency.

It publishes no minutes. It publishes no agendas. It does not invite the very sector (the shooting sector) that it affects.

That’s why Politics Reloaded has targeted the FWPWG with a series of Freedom of Information (FOI) requests. FOI is known in other states as Right-To-Information, Right-To-Know and Government Information (Public Access).

Our FOI requests sought access to documents, such as minutes, that related to policy discussions and policy advice – because this ends up as being recommendations to state and territory governments to change our gun laws.

This started nearly a year ago, has cost a lot of money and involved dozens of emails with the relevant agencies. We’ve kept this under wraps – until now, because it’s starting to bear fruit.

The FOI challenge

One of the key FOIs is the one that went to the NSW Police because of the way FOI’s work in that state.

The NSW Police Force denied the request, stating that there was an “overriding public interest against the disclosure” of the information.

The refusal was based on concerns that releasing the documents could compromise the effectiveness of the police force’s functions, such as investigating and preventing crime.

They argued that they had to avoid releasing the documents to “stay one step ahead of criminals”.

However, we never asked for that information: we asked for documents that pertained to policy discussions and advice. Not once did we ask for operational information such as details of investigations – or on criminals.

What is particularly telling is that at no stage did NSW Police raise these concerns with us. Our request was specific and clear.

While investigations may provide background to discussions, our request was clear and agreed to – until they tried this smokescreen.

Dodging transparency and accountability

The response set out the principles that guide consideration of FOI requests. Among them are the need for transparency and accountability by public bodies such as our police forces.

That’s because public agencies need to be subject to sufficient public oversight. As the response says, failing to be transparent can erode public trust and hinder accountability – which, in our language, means politicians can lose their jobs.

Decisions made in closed settings will also inevitably lead to the wrong decisions being made.

In this instance, it is imperative that shooters be able to access and question the rationale behind firearm regulations and hold policymakers accountable for their actions.

Instead, it would appear some within NSW Police – possibly registry managers and policy representatives to the FWPWG – came up with the story about investigations and criminals for their FOI people to use, to avoid being subjected to transparency.

HOWEVER, we spotted this a mile away – and went straight to appeal. If that fails, then we’ll be off to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal – which is where this fight will involve real money.

We need to stop bias from driving public policy – and for shooters who want to see fights like this undertaken. This can be most effectively done by getting your support on Patreon (at patreon.com/PoliticsReloaded)

The FOI appeal

We have filed a formal appeal with the Information and Privacy Commission of NSW (IPC) with three main arguments.

The details of our arguments have been released to our subscribers on Patreon and members who helped to bankroll our work.

We’ve shown them the FOI response and the appeal we lodged.

If you would like to see our arguments – and like the work we’re doing – then sign up at Patreon now.

IF THE OUTCOME goes the way we hope, then we’ll be well placed to not only uncover what the FWPWG has or has not agreed on but put a stop the “policy by stealth” approach that several states have used, with their own unique attacks on shooters.

Examples include the recent ammo purchase attack in the Northern Territory, calibre attack Queensland, crazy new application form in Tasmania, and unexplained firearm reclassifications in Victoria.

Plus, don’t forget section 4 (2)(a) of WA’s atrocious new Firearms Act 2024, which states that one of the objectives of that new act is “to facilitate a nationally consistent approach to the control of firearms.”

That’s exactly what we reckon the FWPWG will be looking at now.

A SECOND FORMAL APPEAL in another state is likely to be made soon. We’ll be reporting on that one hopefully later this month.

That’s why backing Politics Reloaded makes sense …

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May 18, 2025
VICTORIA’S Allan Government set to rip millions out of shooting
The Victorian Government is trying to sweep an air gun range promise made to the shooting community under the carpet. We intend to hold them to it.
Prefer the podcast version?

Watch the full interview – click the image below.

The Commonwealth Games legacy

THE VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT has gone back on a key promise by refusing to build a shooting facility that it had previously promised the shooting community it would fund.

WHEN the Victorian Government pulled out of the 2026 Commonwealth Games, former Premier, Dan Andrews said that the government was still committed to building the facilities needed for the games, as legacy to the community even though it was no longer going to host the flagship event.

This included the development on an international grade air gun range at Morwell.

The range was intended to accommodate International Shooting Sports Federation (ISSF) air pistol and air rifle events, placing Melbourne on the stage for key international shooting events.

Doing this could have elevated shooting to a new level, never seen before in Victoria.

Who represents Olympic shooting?

IN AUSTRALIA, ISSF shooting sports are represented by Shooting Australia (SA), which includes affiliations in Victoria by Target Rifle Victoria (TRV), Victorian Amateur Pistol Association (VAPA) who run the premiere air rifle and pistol events.

The Victorian Clay Target Association and Victorian Rifle Association are also ISSF organisations, however they do not hold air gun events. Plus there is biathlon to consider for the winter Olympics.

Following Andrew’s announcement, the government started consulting affected organisations to see if adjustments to the original commitments were needed.

For example, whether facilities should be built in a different way, or in different locations.

Failing to understand the shooting sports

IN AN INEXCUSABLE BLUNDER, the government ended up consulting the wrong people.

Rather than consult SA, TRV or VAPA, it consulted a shotgun club – which has no interest in air gun events.

That’s like consulting soccer about the height of AFL goal posts. This is despite the original proposal being designed and costed by TRV.

On the warpath over the air range

TRV has made representation to the following politicians:

Minister Steve Dimopoulos – Victorian Labor Party, Minister for Sport.

Senator Bridget McKenzie – The Nationals – Federal

Senator Anne Ruston Liberal, Opposition Minister for Sport – Federal

Trung Luu – Victorian Labor Party – Member for Western Metro

John Lister – Victorian Liberal Party – Member of Werribee

Jeff Bourman – Farmers, Fishers and Shooters Party

Sam Groth – Liberal Party Victoria, Opposition Sports Minister and Deputy leader

Brad Batten – Liberal Party Victoria, Opposition Premier

When governments cross the line

DESPITE representations by TRV to government and ministers, the government is in some sort of paralysis over what to do.

To us, the solution is simple: honour the original commitment. While ‘cost’ has been cited, the world class range has already factored into the state’s budget.

The amount involved – approx. $2m (plus land) – means as much to the state’s $100b per annum budget as $2.40 does to someone earning $120,000 per year.

How air became a political issue

TRV, like other ISSF organisations, is normally apolitical.

However this matter is so important to the future of the shooting sports, that it has decided to go public, and vowed to make this an election issue for the next Victorian State Election in 2026.

OUR MESSAGE to the Allan Government is simple.

Acknowledge the commitment, recognise that it got things wrong (and fix it’s consultation model with the shooting community), and take immediate steps to make the air gun range happen.

Victoria needs an international facility

In fact, our view is that Victoria does not have a venue suitable for international shooting events, while other states do.

Sydney and Brisbane can cater for international events, while Perth and Adelaide are part of the way there. Yet Melbourne has nothing suitable for world class competition.

That’s why we believe the Allan Government needs to commit to building a full ISSF range (shotgun, rifle pistol) IMMEDIATELY.

More promises will only serve to increase the cynicism and anger.
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April 28, 2025
TAKE IT OUT ON LABOR: How WA shooters can send a key message
Federal elections don’t normally affect shooters as much as state elections.
… but here’s why shooters in WA need to vent their anger against Federal Labor.
Prefer the podcast version?

Watch the full interview – click the image below.

Voting in the federal election has started

BEING ONE ISSUE (PRO-GUN) VOTERS, we’re always looking at how elections affect shooters.

Whether you vote this way in the federal election, or differently is, of course, entirely up to you. That’s because gun laws and bad policy affects shooters in different ways.

In some cases, it may be not much at all. For other shooters, these matters affect them very much. Some shooters stand to lose a lot from bad laws & policy – and some stand to lose their entire pastime or business.

Even if you aren’t affected now, think about the long term consequences of letting bad gun laws and policy take a hold – and why it’s important to deal with it now.

Federal involvement in firearms

GUN LAWS are predominately a state issue. The Federal Government’s main involvement is at controlling what enters and leaves our borders -and maintaining the National Firearms Agreement.

The NFA is the central focal point of our state governments – except that they only comply with it when it suits them.

IF they were ‘true to their word’, our gun laws would be uniform – and we wouldn’t be seeing the attacks on shooters in Tasmania, Queensland – or Western Australia that we’re seeing right now.

…but as you know, states are coming up with their own laws – and this is something that needs to be stopped.

Our recommendations

FOR SHOOTERS outside Western Australia, we recommend shooters simply vote for the pro-gun parties first, followed by their choice of Liberal or Labor – and the Greens and Animal Justice Party last.

Federal pro-gun parties who may be on your large white ballot paper include, Katter, One Nation and the Libertarian Party.

Where to vote

EARLY VOTING has already started. Click here for information on the Australian Electoral Commission’s website on where you can vote now.

Tasmania

TASMANIA is the only state where we recommend shooters vote Shooters, Fishers & Farmers Party.

The SFFP’s Phillip Bigg is one of the few candidates we feel can not only articulate the challenges and options facing shooters, but is more than happy to play hard-ball in the political arena where needed.

New South Wales

THE ONLY ray of light we see here is voting for Labor’s Dan Repacholi in the seat of Hunter.

Dan’s very much a shooter, having represented Australia in pistol shooting.

He has been busy helping to educate other federal MPs who know nothing about shooting, which we reckon is a real plus.

We need Dan Repacholi to be returned.

Victoria

IT’S A MIXED BAG for Victorians. State Labor is starting to do real harm for shooters – but for now, we’re just recommending that if you’re:

in the seat of La Trobe (Beaconsfield etc), you vote for Labor.
That’s because the local member, Liberal’s Jason Wood, is vehemently anti-gun with a strong track record of speaking out against private firearm ownership; and

in the seat of McEwen (Whittlesea), voting Liberal.
That’s because the local member, Labor’s Rob Mitchell, has a history of cosying up to shooting organisations to get their support, without ever returning the favour.

Queensland

If you’re in Queensland, you’ve got the really great option of voting for Katter’s Australian Party.

We also recommend you keep an eye on the Shooters Union Australia’s website for any last minute advice they put out.

Western Australia

THE BIG NEWS in this election is the opportunity that Western Australian shooters have to push back against the draconian new gun laws in that state.

The laws need little introduction. They include severe limits on what you can own and where you can shoot.

They have requirements for regular mental and physical health checks – and compliance costs that are significantly higher than the rest of Australia.

All brought to you by WA’s state Labor Party.

While guns ARE a state issue, we recommend shooters in WA TAKE IT OUT ON FEDERAL LABOR.

Federal Labor candidates will try to distance themselves from the gun issue, but the WA Labor branch hosts their profiles on their own website – and is backing their federal campaign.

So they’re joined at the hips.

In other words, don’t cop the excuse that federal Labor candidates will give you “that it’s a state issue”.

Instead, make it a state AND federal issue by voting that way.

Tell your Labor candidates that the issue is way too important to simply brush off like that.

Your vote against Labor in WA will add pressure to the whole Labor movement to back away from the mess it has created.
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April 27, 2025
AUSTRALIA Institute’s wildly inaccurate attack on guns
The Australia Institute says it likes to engage in political debates. Except when it comes to guns. That’s why we say they’re evasive and exaggerate facts.
They’re chicken …
The Institute’s claim

THE AUSTRALIA INSTITUTE claims to be one of the country’s most influential policy policy think tanks.

Based in Canberra, it states that it is non-partisan, and won’t shy away from political debates.

It says it believes in democracy and that it’s work is aimed at being informed.

Failing on guns

IN LATE JANUARY, the institute wrote an article suggesting that gun ownership in Australia is ‘failing to keep pace with community expectations’.

The article, sourced almost entirely from anti gun groups such as Gun Control Australia and the Australian Gun Safety Alliance, fails to cite any source from within the shooting industry. There is also no evidence that they tried to do so.

We put in a request for an interview on our podcast to provide the institute with the opportunity to provide that balance.

We asked the Institute if would be prepared to be interviewed to discuss its findings, the rationale and the basis behind it.

However, it failed to respond.

That’s why we say, they’re chicken ….

Doing the antis’ bidding

THE INSTITUTE’S one sided article stated that its key findings are:

There are more guns in Australia than there were before the Port Arthur massacre.

There are also more Australians here… 8m more, actually.

Firearms are not confined to rural areas, with a third of guns in New South Wales located in Sydney, Newcastle, and Wollongong.

No kidding. Is that why every capital city has a major shooting centre there?

All states and territories are failing to meet key criteria for effective gun control, including data transparency and limits on the number of firearms a person can own.

Other than in WA, where the WA Police are happy to publish the addresses of gun owners to make life for criminals easier

On average, a firearms licence holder owns more than 4 guns, with two individuals in suburban Sydney each owning over 300 firearms.

Yes, and they’re called shooters. Or gun collectors. .. and every single one of them is licensed by the police. Except for the criminals, of course.

Three-in-four Australians support limits on the number of firearms an individual can possess.

Four in four shooters don’t. We’re working on the non-shooters by inviting them to our clubs.

The Institute’s self-serving scorecard

The institute also published a ‘scorecard‘, which is self explanatory.

As any shooter knows, this list is full of stuff that is designed to choke the shooting sports.

For those who may not be aware, gun limits serve the same purpose as limiting the number of tools someone has in a shed.

The real question should be whether holders are ‘fit and proper’ to hold licences. People who run dodgy associations that publish misleading tables do not fall in that league.

The age limit would kill the Olympic shooting disciplines – ….. ….. …. and why would that be good? ….. …. .

The ‘advocates’ the Institute believes need to be consulted need to be more than uniformed academics.

They need to be from the shooting industry in the same way that consultation on aviation safety needs to be informed by those who work in that sector.

In closing, the logo you see for the Institute on the scorecard boasts that is supports “research that matters”.

We’re suggesting that the research it does, is anything but transparent or balanced. It’s evasive, exaggerates or invents problems and as a result, comes up with the wrong answer.

Gun safety advocates?|
Or gun safety imposters?

It also intrigues us that the Australian Gun Safety Alliance has the name that it has.

Its convenor, Stephen Bendle, has his roots in the Alannah and Madeline Foundation which has been using a national tragedy to push what is clearly a political agenda. At least, as far as we know.

My bet is that if I put a loaded 22 on a table in front of the ‘gun safety alliance’ and asked them to make the firearm safe, they would not know what to do.

There’s a very good chance they would shoot themselves in the foot.

Or worse still, me, in the foot.
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March 12, 2025
HARD-LEFT WING: WA Labor preferences the Greens & Animal Justice Party
Labor’s How-To-Vote card shows just how hard left-wing Cook’s party is
Voting in the Upper House

VOTING “ABOVE THE LINE” in any election around Australia means you are trusting the party you are giving a “1” to, where your vote should go if they get excluded.

We’re going through the registered How-To-Vote cards – and the news for shooters in WA is that the news about Labor gets worse.

Many of their upper house cards are putting left wing parties high on their list. That isn’t entirely unexpected, but what they’ve done here is gone hard left!

You will see in the example below (which is typical of the cards they’ve registered) that if you follow Labor’s How-To Vote card, your vote could end up going to the Greens and Animal Justice Party.

Hard left-wing Labor means more restrictions

LET’S BE CLEAR about this. The hard left-wing parties Labor wants you to preference want to take all your guns off you!

They will kill off all hunting, pest control, target shooting – all use of guns – leaving you to ponder if you should take up stamp collecting.

They are also preferencing the pot smokers who are ok on guns but if they don’t get up, then the Animal Justice Party will get your vote.

That’s how they got up in Victoria in 2018, on the back of votes for the SFFP.

Don’t risk voting Labor.

How should you vote – lower house?

In the lower house (Assembly), if you live in Albany, we recommend you vote for Thomas Brough (Liberal Party).

If you live in the electorate of Darling Range, vote for Morgan Byas (National Party).

These guys are about as pro-gun as you can get.

In other seats, you might find the Australian Christians. While they may not be your first choice, bear in mind, they’re pretty good on guns & always have been. Plus, in most cases, you will still be able to choose the Nationals and / or Liberals.

No matter where you live, put Labor and then the Greens last.

Avoiding left-wing parties in the upper house

VOTING in the upper house is more complex, as you’ll get the long ballot paper with a lot of different parties to choose from.

Do NOT simply Vote 1 ‘above the line’.

Voting 1 ‘above the line’ is like giving someone who promised to do your shopping your wallet. Add a politician to the mix, and you can see the problem.

In fact if you just “Vote 1”, there’s a good chance your vote will become ‘exhausted’ if you don’t number other boxes.

Instead, take a couple of minutes to vote ‘below the line’. This will enable you to pick out exactly who (ie individuals) you want your vote to go to.

You only need to number 20 boxes to make your vote count.

WE RECOMMEND that you:

Vote 1– Louise Kingston (you’ll find her in the independent column at “Group M“)

Vote 2 – Steve Thomas (Liberal Party) and / or Nick Goiran (Liberal Party – “Group C”)

Vote 3 etc – pro-gun parties, then the Nationals and rest of the Liberals

Vote last – Labor then the Greens. However remember you can stop at box number 20 if you wish, for your vote to count.

Don’t leave it to the last minute

WHATEVER you do, don’t leave voting to the last minute.

You’ll end up in a queue, be running late to pick up the kids, and end up voting the wrong way out of habit.  This is the most important election facing WA shooters, so slow down a bit and don’t rush it.

POSTAL and EARLY VOTING start next 19 and 24 February respectively.

Click here for more information from the WA Electoral Commission.
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February 16, 2025
WA Gun Rally – this is what you need to know
WA shooters are facing ** horrendous ** new gun laws. That’s why shooters like you need to get to the pro-gun rally to send the political parties a sharp message.
Prefer the podcast version?

Watch the full interview – click the image below.

Or listen to the audio version – below.

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WA Gun Rally

WITH A STATE ELECTION coming up in March, WA shooters now have a great opportunity to send the message to the state’s political parties that they will vote out anyone who backs the wrong gun laws.

This follows the rewrite of WA’s gun laws that make getting a licence significantly harder and more expensive.

Some of the things that the new laws do are:

Require shooters to get mental and physical health checks;

Limit the types of firearms and calibres they use;

Limit the number of guns they can own – in many cases, to just five;

Require shooters to buy new safes – which will be so heavy, you’ll need a crane to move them

This is a nightmare scenario for shooters in WA.

There’s also a real risk of these moves being copied interstate – which is why going after government members of parliament at WA’s State Election in March, is so important.

Let’s use the rally to change our politicians

THE SHOOTERS UNION OF AUSTRALIA and Politics Reloaded are spearheading a huge rally on Saturday, 8 February, to send a sharp message to our politicians.

The rally was organised after being approached by members of the Sporting Shooters Association of Australia (WA) who felt their organisation had given up the fight.

The rally will also make it clear to shooters that at the upcoming state election, they need to VOTE LABOR OUT.

Rally speakers will be announced later on – but they cover a spectrum of political and shooting industry people.

See the image below for the information you need.

This article also contains further below on how to get to the rally – and another way you can make sure Labor hears you loud and clear

How to get to the rally

The venue is Perth’s Supreme Court Gardens.

The good news is that Perth has public transport terminals within easy walking distance of the gardens.

They are:

Perth Train Station – Wellington Street

Elizabeth Quay Train Station – Mounts Bay Road

Elizabeth Quay Bus Station – Mounts Bay Road

Transperth Ferry – Barrack Street Jetty

Terrace Road Carpark – Terrace Road

There is public parking just next door to the venue. However, we recommend you use public transport in case parking becomes tight.

You can get more information on Perth’s public transport network from TransPerth by clicking here.

This will be a family event and is being held under permit issued by WA Police.

Register now

Use the QR code in the rally image or click here to register for the event.

While registration isn’t mandatory, this will make sure you get the updates you want – including a REMINDER the day before – so you don’t accidently end up doing something way less important.

We’ll also let you know who the speakers are closer to the event.

Nothing would be worse than hanging out the washing and then realising that you forgot to go the most important event on your shooting calendar!

Tell Labor what you think-call them!

We’re not done yet.

We’re suggesting shooters who want to boot Labor out to call their head office – on (08) 9328 7222

Be polite. Tell them:

You’re a gun owner

You’re attending the rally on 8 February; and

You’re going to vote Labor out

This phone number is often answered by a real person. If they’ve got the answering machine on, leave that message.

Don’t be abusive. The people who take the calls are employees just doing their job, not the party people who made these shocking laws.

However Labor needs to hear you loud and clear!

Get your mates to the rally!

HELP shooters who may not be on social media or email know about this rally.

Tell them when the next time you see them – whether that’s at the general store, servo or at the range.

Let them know just how important this is – and that you’ll give them a lift to get to the rally if they need it.

Labor gears up the fake profiles

Finally, understand that Labor has been using fake profiles on Facebook groups purporting to represent WA shooters to try and discourage shooters from attending the rally.

We understand they are worried about how big the rally could get just before the election – so be prepared to call those Labor supporters out.
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January 23, 2025
LEAD BAN: UK moves on hunting and target ammo

The UK is set to ban the use of lead ammo – in a move that has started here

UK set to ban lead ammo

SHOOTERS IN THE UK face a ban on the use of lead ammo.

The move, which is reminiscent of the Victorian Government’s decision to ban lead for most forms of hunting, followed the establishment of a taskforce in 2021 to look at the issue.

Ban to affect nearly all shooters in the UK

The news on the ban was broken by the Gun Traders Association of UK, after the “Health and Safety Executive” presented a ‘final opinion’ to ban lead to the UK’s Secretary for State.

That Secretary now has around 2 months to act on it before the proposal goes to Parliament. The proposal relates to lead ammo above 6.11mm – which leaves us with 22s, but that’s about it.

The GTA has gone through the advice and says that the proposal is to prohibit the use of lead shot for both live quarry, and for target shooting.

The proposal will also prohibit the sale of lead shot.

However, the proposal will contain a derogation which would allow a for a number of competitive athletes on the British Shooting list to continue shooting lead shot.

However, this is limited for the purpose of international competition and training – meaning that only a few shooters will be allowed to continue with lead.

The proposal will include some transition arrangements – but will also require the de-leading of ranges.

Except for air guns

THE BAN will not apply to air guns, or to the sale of air pellets. However, this appears to be the only concession given to shooters.

UK shooters need to fight

AS IS THE CASE IN AUSTRALIA, the UK shooting community is facing an uphill battle.

Victoria has already moved to ban lead for most hunting, and it’s probably only a matter of time before it follows the lead set by the UK here.

THE GTA did it’s best to push back on the proposal.

They won some reprieves and worked closely with cartridge manufacturers and others to ensure the trade’s interests were as best represented as possible – but they are losing the war.

As is the case here, UK shooters HAVE to become far more political than they have ever done, if they want to stop the attacks on what they do.

Let’s hope they can get there. That’s why we’re hoping they can at least have parliament toss the proposed lead ban out.

Why not put this on your club’s noticeboard?

December 29, 2024
TURNING THE SCREWS: Here’s what WA’s new safe requirements will cost you
WAPol has been busy cutting deals with safe suppliers who pander to them.
We tell you what the Cook Government is planning for you & the cost it will bring.

It’s why WA shooters need to vote Labor out of office.
WA’s proposed safe requirements

WA LABOR has revealed it’s horrendous proposal for new storage requirements for shooters.

The proposal will form the basis for the new regulations, due to come out after the WA State Election in March.

WA Police are also speaking with suppliers about the products that will meet the new requirements.

While this might seem reasonable on the surface, it means local suppliers will be given licence to ensure the regulations point to the products they sell.

What WAPol isn’t doing is consulting the wider shooting community – including other suppliers interstate or internationally.

Consulting only a chosen range of suppliers shuts the door for shooters who might wish to source safes from elsewhere. Here is the table of new requirements – click the image below to see a larger version.

Dodgy deals, done dirt cheap

We understand WA Police have also told shooters that they will make their own determinations on what safes can be ‘approved’.

The problem with this, is that WA Police aren’t experts on safe design.

If WAPol was genuinely interested in specifying requirements rather than specific brands, then they need to look at what is available internationally.

It’s not good enough to look at just what is supplied in Perth.

This arrangement has all the hallmarks of setting up deals for those who side with the police.

Get offside with the police, and they’ll shut you down.

Or side with them, and get rewarded.

A quick look at the new safe requirements

If you look at the table, you will see that:

Safe thicknesses start at 3mm sides and 6mm doors for longarms– well above what is required in other states;

Alarms will be required on the 6th firearm; and

CCTV will be required when you get to the 6th firearm in some categories

When a new safe might be needed

The table does provide grandfathering of existing arrangements for some existing licencees.

However, don’t forget WA also licences firearms. It remains to be seen if buying a new firearm will require new safes to be installed.

In the meantime, the WA Government has not yet announced any financial assistance to help shooters with the new requirements … and of course, is unlikely to do so.

One savvy shooter who did some shopping around told us:
“… the extreme level required of the new laws which you can buy today has 2 double doors on the front and will set one back $11,750 without delivery and installation costs. Weighs over 500kg”.

Whether that ends up being the actual cost to you isn’t the point.

The point is that even if it was half that amount, the new laws are a massive impost on shooters. They are disgraceful and you deserve better.

That’s why the laws MUST BE REPEALED.

** VOTE, VOTE, VOTE **

Our advice to shooters who are looking at this in despair, is that you need to make sure you vote properly in March.

That means putting Labor, then the Greens last – no matter what electorate you are in. Why? Because of this garbage.

You might think that you are a lone voice and won’t make any difference, but you’re wrong. There are 90,000 of you who are thinking the same thing so you aren’t alone.

In other words, just make sure you can do what you can at the ballot box. Let your shooting mates know to do the same.

We’ll be doing our bit too.

We’ll be ramping up our articles and videos in early January. That’s because we want to make sure we get this message to as many shooters in WA as possible.

The best way to be reminded about this – and to get the best, latest voting advice – is to hop on our email list.

You can do that by clicking here. There is no cost!
Why not put this on your club’s noticeboard?
December 8, 2024
WAR IN THE WEST: Nats thumb their nose at the Libs over gun laws

The WA Liberals now have a simple choice. Either avoid war by agreeing to the National’s rewrite of the state’s gun laws, or face political oblivion.

Prefer the audio version?

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It’s war!

A PUBLIC FIGHT between the Liberal and National parties in WA has created an opportunity for shooters to regain some of the ground they lost in recent times against the state’s draconian gun laws.

Coalition frayed at edges

The spat started after the Nationals said they would not form a coalition government with the Liberals unless it committed to repealing the new laws.

The Liberals retorted by suggesting the Nationals are leaving the door open to cutting deals with Labor at the next state election.

However the idea of the Nats siding with Labor is extremely unlikely.

In response, Liberal leader, Libby Mettam, held a media conference to refute the claim.

However, sources from both sides of parliament have described her move as ‘train wreck’, leaving several Liberal MPs at odds with their leader.

A two page article then appeared in the WA papers which brought the story together under the one roof.

Our take. It’s war alright…

IN OUR MOST RECENT PODCAST, we take you through that fight, and why the Liberals best hope for next year’s WA State Election is to dump their current leader.

We also explain why the Nationals have a bigger opportunity than they might realise, by going beyond simply repealing the current legislation.

If they simply did a ‘copy and paste’ from legislation in any other state, they would bring WA closer to uniformity with other states. After all, we are supposed to have a National Firearms Agreement. We don’t like the NFA but even this would be a lot better than what WA shooters have now.

WA has ‘property letters’, licences individual firearms (rather than just register them) and a host of other problems that set the state’s firearm regime up to fail.

Click the image below to watch our video on this matter.

An opportunity for WA shooters

The move by the Nationals raises an interesting challenge for the Liberals.

Half of the 10 Liberal MPs in WA either abstained from, or voted against, Labors gun laws.

This means there is real tension within the Liberal Party about this. Either face war with the Nats and shooters, or be unified against Labor. This creates an opportunity that WA shooters can exploit.

If the cards fall the right way, this could create a significant opportunity for shooters to retaliate against the Cook Government – and wind back the clock on what has been happening.

A win in the west would send a key message to shooters in other states.

Getting there will require a bit of luck in having things line up that way, but if enough shooters vote the right way at the next WA State Election, then it can happen.

Harvey hits the mark on WA’s policy shamble

We also suggest shooters check out WA journo, Ben Harvey’s, take on the state’s gun policy shamble.

It covers the story of how WA Police are now going ‘door to door’ to take guns off owners who had the law changed from underneath their feet – and the gun buyback debacle.

Check it out – from the 2:40 mark – by clicking here

November 16, 2024