This is a long-standing coronial recommendation that has been ignored and recent tragic shooting deaths have confirmed this reform is urgently needed. We need laws that put community safety before the interests of the gun lobby.
Greens MP and Justice Spokesperson David Shoebridge said:
“No one should get their hands on a gun unless they have had a mental health check to show they pose no risk to the community or their family.
“There are far too many tragedies where men have had access to guns and then used them against themselves and their families.
“A simple and standardised mental health check needs to be a basic requirement before people get hold of a firearm.
“The fact that this common sense recommendation from the NSW Coroner remains unimplemented a decade after it was made proves what a stranglehold the gun lobby has on government policy.
“We acknowledge there are legitimate reasons for people, especially primary producers, to have a gun but this comes with responsibilities to ensure community safety.
“In this country, at least for now, having a gun isn’t a right, it’s a privilege.
“The best way to avoid going down the guns and dollars chaos of US politics is to take a forward approach on gun control and actively work to make out laws safer.
“Tragically most Parliaments in the country are taking the opposite path,” Mr Shoebridge said.
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