Member for Northern Tablelands, Brendan Moylan, says the Minns Labor Government’s firearms buyback is “half baked, rushed and dangerously misguided,” warning it targets farmers and licensed shooters instead of the extremists and organised criminals who pose the real threat to NSW communities.
Mr Moylan said NSW is the only state to sign up to the scheme, calling it “a national announcement with no national support.” He said the proposal offers flat payments that don’t match market value, provides no clarity on ammunition or accessories and has no disclosed NSW Budget allocation.
“People deserve fair and reasonable compensation. What Labor has offered is neither fair nor reasonable,” he said.
“Labor rushed these ridiculous laws through Parliament eight days after the worst terrorist attack on Australian soil. They ignored stakeholders, ignored warnings, and now we’re seeing the consequences.”
Mr Moylan who voted against the new laws in December said Labor’s approach is “unfair, unworkable and aimed at the wrong people.”
Mr Moylan said criminals and would be terrorists will not “walk into a cop shop and hand over their guns,” describing the buyback as a political smokescreen for Labor’s failures on national security.
He said NSW communities endured rising anti Semitism and violent extremism, while Labor failed to act decisively.
“This buyback is a distraction from Labor’s inaction. On their watch we saw vile protests at the Opera House, escalating violence, and a Prime Minister who initially refused a royal commission into the Bondi attack,” Mr Moylan said.
“We are facing a war against hate and extremism. Good people across our community are suffering. We must target the real threat, terrorists and organised criminals not farmers and licensed shooters.
“Regional NSW is being forced to pay for Labor’s mistakes, our farmers, our small family run gun shops, the people who actually follow the law, are the ones being punished by this half-baked buyback. These communities keep our state fed, keep our industries moving, and they deserve laws that protect them, not policies that cripple their businesses and strip them of the tools they rely on every day.”
Media Release: Member for Northern Tablelands, Brendan Moylan
