{"id":90207,"date":"2026-09-07T12:49:40","date_gmt":"2026-09-07T12:49:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/90207\/"},"modified":"2026-09-07T12:49:40","modified_gmt":"2026-09-07T12:49:40","slug":"independent-mp-to-move-to-send-gun-bill-to-committee-as-amendments-pile-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/90207\/","title":{"rendered":"Independent MP to move to send gun bill to committee as amendments pile up"},"content":{"rendered":"

Independent MP Helen Burnet will push to have Tasmania\u2019s contentious firearms bill sent to a committee this week, arguing it is too \u201ccomplex\u201d and too \u201cpoliticised\u201d to be put to a vote.<\/p>\n

Burnet, the independent member for Clark and deputy speaker, will move the motion when the House of Assembly returns.<\/p>\n

She said parliament had only had the 83-page Firearms Amendment (Strengthening Firearms Security) Bill 2026 for three weeks and had been swamped with proposed changes in recent days.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have received six amendments from Labor, 10 amendments from the Greens and 10 amendments from [independent MP Kristie] Johnston and I understand [Carlo] Di Falco is wanting to move amendments,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese aren\u2019t minor amendments. Some will have significant ramifications and need proper consideration.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"The House of Assembly will return on Tuesday to consider the firearms bill. Image \/ Pulse (File)<\/p>\n

Burnet said Labor\u2019s changes alone would have significant costs.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust the reforms being proposed by Labor, for example, will have significant administrative and financial ramifications for the Tasmanian police and the government,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Burnet, who quit the Greens in January to sit as an independent, said many submissions had questioned the evidence behind some of the reforms.<\/p>\n

She said those stakeholders had not been consulted on the amendments now being proposed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not good governance,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"\"Illegal firearms previously seized by Tasmania Police. Image \/ Tasmania Police (File)<\/p>\n

Burnet said the bill had become politicised to the point that she feared confusion on the floor of parliament and in the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cFunctioning and clear legislation, especially when it is around something as serious as firearms laws, demands a calm and measured approach,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is exactly why committees exist \u2013 to consider a bill in detail, take evidence from different stakeholders and make considered recommendations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Police Minister Felix Ellis tabled the bill on August 20. It does not set a cap on how many guns a person can own.<\/p>\n

The government deferred debate late last month after MPs asked for more time.<\/p>\n

At the time, Ellis said the bill had \u201cgenerated significant community and stakeholder feedback\u201d and the government wanted to give everyone the best possible opportunity to make an informed decision.<\/p>\n

More than 600 submissions were received, with most opposing caps, Ellis said.<\/p>\n

He described the bill as targeting \u201ccriminals and terrorists\u201d, through better intelligence sharing between states and tougher penalties for trafficking stolen firearms.<\/p>\n

Ellis has argued against caps, saying a buyback to support them would cost $40 to $90 million and \u201cwould not get one single illegal firearm off our streets\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"\"Police Minister Felix Ellis tabled the firearms bill on August 20. Image \/ Pulse (File)<\/p>\n

The bill includes its own buyback. Owners of reclassified guns would be compensated at 1.5 times market value, while a six-month voluntary scheme at market value would open to any legal firearm once the bill becomes law.<\/p>\n

Labor and the Greens will move amendments to introduce caps on the number of guns a person can own.<\/p>\n

Labor MLC Sarah Lovell said her party did not want \u201cunlimited guns in the community\u201d and that the Australian Medical Association and family violence groups backed caps.<\/p>\n

\"\"Shooters, Fishers and Farmers MP Carlo Di Falco will vote against the bill. Image \/ Pulse (File)<\/p>\n

Shooters, Fishers and Farmers MP Carlo Di Falco will vote against both the caps and the bill.<\/p>\n

He said he wanted no caps, no reclassifications and no further restrictions, arguing the focus should instead be on people who commit crimes with firearms.<\/p>\n

Independent Clark MP Kristie Johnston said the bill contained significant changes from the version released for public comment.<\/p>\n

Parliament will sit from 10am on Tuesday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Independent MP Helen Burnet will push to have Tasmania\u2019s contentious firearms bill sent to a committee this week,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":90208,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[22,21],"class_list":["post-90207","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-au","tag-austrlia"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90207","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=90207"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90207\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/90208"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=90207"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=90207"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=90207"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}