In 1996, the federal government and the states and territories agreed to a uniform approach to firearms regulation, including a ban on certain semi-automatic rifles and shotguns, standard licensing and permit criteria, storage requirements and inspections, and greater restrictions on the sale of firearms and ammunition.

Firearms licence applicants are required to take a safety course and show a “genuine reason” for owning a firearm, which cannot include self-defence.

A national buyback program for prohibited weapons took place in 1996-1997 and resulted in more than 700,000 weapons being surrendered.

The Australian Government’s objective is to foster a sustained community commitment to a safer Australia not driven through profit, as per the buy-back scheme, but through an individual’s social responsibility to hand in or register unregistered firearms, parts, and ammunition through a permanent national firearms amnesty.

Black market firearms are used for criminal purposes and find their way to the black market via illicit importation, illicit manufacture, and theft from registered and unregistered guns.

The grey market is a subset of the black market. Grey market firearms are those that should have been handed in or registered following major firearm reforms in 1996. The possession of a firearm that was not surrendered in 1996 or registered is illegal.

New research from the University of Sydney (28/4/21) has found that Australian civilians now own more than 3.5 million registered firearms. This is higher than when the NFA was introduced, prior to the 1996 National Firearms Agreement when Australian civilians owned approximately 3.2 million registered firearms.

New research from the University of Sydney (28/4/21) has found that while the proportion of Australians who hold a gun licence has fallen by 48 per cent since 1997, the number of guns per licensed gun-owner has increased, from an average of 2.1 in 1997 to an average of 4 in 2021.

There are a number of factors that must be considered when determining why the number of privately-held licensed guns have increased in Australia. According to research from the University of Sydney, Australia’s population has grown by approximately 40 per cent in the last 25 years. The proportion of Australian households with a firearm has fallen by 75 percent in recent decades. Similarly, the number of hunters and sporting shooters has declined. However, the number of guns per licensed gun-owner has increased, from an average of 2.1 in 1997 to an average of 4 in 2021. Therefore, while there are proportionately fewer licensed gun owners today than in 1997, those that are licensed on average own more guns than before.

In 1996, the Howard Government introduced a number of reforms which restricted the use and possession of semi-automatic and fully-automatic firearms, including those substantially the same in appearance as fully-automatic firearms. New conditions were also introduced that strengthened firearms licensing, registration, reporting and storage requirements.

According to research by the Australian Institute of Criminology, the rate of homicide involving a firearm in Australia has trended downwards since before 1996, but the rate of decline increased after gun law reforms were made under the Howard Government. While there have been ongoing incidents of homicides involving a firearm in Australia, there have been no significant spikes or resurgence noted.

The campaign is being funded by the Commonwealth Government under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. That funding will allow Crime Stoppers to successfully develop and implement a national strategy.

The issue of gun-control is a highly charged debate. As a community-based not-for-profit organisation, our primary focus is to do all we can to create a safer Australia.

This campaign is designed to raise awareness that people can safely and confidentially report someone with an illegal firearm.

It also to increase awareness of the national permanent firearms amnesty so people can confidently surrender or register unwanted or unregistered firearms, parts, and ammunition.