The Latest on Labor’s Firearms Fiasco
As at 22 July 2025
On 28 May 2025, the Opposition secured a pivotal victory. As Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, I moved a motion to refer the Firearms Act 2024 to the Standing Committee on Legislation for a three-month inquiry.
After every other non-government party indicated their support for the motion, the best the arrogant Cook Labor Government could say is that they’d accept the outcome. The truth is, they had no choice after having resisted this very same thing for more than a year. Their belligerence had been exposed, and they were embarrassed.
The motion’s timing was critical. This motion followed the 2025 State election, which saw Labor lose its total control of WA’s Upper House. From 22 May 2025, non-government members regained the majority, making the motion's success possible.
Let’s recap the initial sequence of events that started this fiasco:
In late 2023, the Cook Labor Government opened public consultation on its proposed “reforms”. That consultation period proved to be tokenistic. Despite 12,500+ West Aussies calling for a three-month extension, the government refused. They insisted on allowing only one month for feedback.
In May 2024, the Government said “the law… will be subject to the full scrutiny of Upper House debate, as is normal practice”. That pledge of full scrutiny proved to be a lie.
On 28 May 2024, WA Labor arrogantly used its numbers to defeat the Opposition’s motion to send the Firearms Bill 2024 for a full public parliamentary inquiry despite a record-breaking official parliamentary e-petition with over 32,000 signatures respectfully requesting that this be supported.
Labor’s Deputy Leader in the Legislative Council arrogantly declared the Bill “urgent” on 11 June 2024, a mere one day after the Government had given notice of further amendments to its own Bill.
On 18 June 2024, the WA Labor Government arrogantly bulldozed the gigantic Bill through Parliament’s upper house with more than 480 clauses rammed through without one word of debate or question able to be asked.
There is no doubt that the passage of the Firearms Bill 2024 by the Cook Labor Government was one of the worst episodes of legislative bulldozing on record.
That’s why when the final vote was cast - I left the chamber in disgust.
As I outlined in my final speech, I distanced myself entirely from this law-making debacle which saw only 11 clauses out of 492 in this gigantic Bill examined.
Sensible firearms reform should be about creating a regulatory framework that enhances public safety, that focuses its attention on those who flout the law by using unlicensed firearms, and that respects those with a history of responsible citizenship.
The way this legislation was rushed through, bypassing proper consultation and scrutiny, was a blatant disregard for democratic principles. What could possibly go wrong?
So, let’s recap the Government’s sequel performance that turned this into a full-blown fiasco:
The Firearms Act 2024 received Royal Assent from the Governor, on 27 June 2024, with substantial portions of the Act still awaiting commencement on a date to be fixed by proclamation.
On 13 August 2024, I gave notice of a motion in the Legislative Council seeking for the Standing Committee on Legislation to conduct a thorough review of the Act. Even though this motion would cause no harm or delay, Labor’s then Leader of the Upper House stated the Government opposed the review request.
In September 2024, the State Administrative Tribunal ruled that WA Police had been acting prematurely by issuing disqualification letters without the legal authority to do so, as key provisions of the Firearms Act 2024 had not yet come into effect.
On 21 December 2024, just days before Christmas:
A commencement date of 31 March 2025 was proclaimed for the remaining provisions of the Firearms Act 2024; and
Over 300 pages of regulations made under the Act were published.
Evidently, even the regulations were flawed, as on 5 February 2025, just over a month later, they were amended.
The Firearms Act 2024 stands as a stark example of rushed, top-down lawmaking—marked by inadequate consultation, broken promises about scrutiny, open contempt towards those with concerns and ultimately guillotined debate and shambolic implementation.
Yet, the Opposition’s successful referral on 28 May 2025 offers a critical second chance. If the parliamentary inquiry is open, inclusive and comprehensive, it could finally address the Act’s many failings, restore faith in the lawmaking process, and ensure that the firearm legislation actually serves public safety instead of the facile political grandstanding displayed by the Cook Labor Government.
On 10 June 2025, as Shadow Attorney General, I was invited to make a submission to the Standing Committee.
Rest assured, as promised, I’ll be making a submission based on your feedback.
Amongst other things, my submission recounted some of the concerns raised with me by the more than 2,000 constituents that have contacted my office:
Online Portal Issues – a high volume of reports about login failures, system crashes, and zero support.
Sudden Licence Cancellations – firearms have been seized and licences cancelled with little warning or limited reasoning.
No Clear Information – confusion and uncertainty have been caused by the unclear regulations coupled with conflicting advice from authorities.
Targeting Law-Abiding Owners – owners feel targeted despite doing the right thing. Lifelong compliance seems to count for nothing. It seems the reforms are not targeting actual misuse.
Impact on Shooting Clubs and Ranges – changes to minimum ages, club recognition, and storage requirements have made participation more difficult, particularly impacting young and/or regional shooters.
High Cost of Compliance – the high cost to adapt to new regulations for storage upgrades, admin, and fees is particularly hurting pensioners and low-income earners.
Land Access Issues - changes to property permission rules and confusion around acceptable land use have left many unable to meet the new criteria.
Unrealistic Deadlines – on many occasions there has been no reasonable time frame given to comply, prepare or adjust.
Reduced Pest Control Capabilities – this is especially the case in semi-rural and regional areas risking a broader negative environmental impact.
Emotional Toll – many people have expressed feeling stressed, bullied, powerless and disregarded by the Cook Labor Government.
It saddens me that thousands of law-abiding responsible firearm owners are feeling the emotional toll. They are stressed, confused and feel shut out.
This is not what fairness looks like.
Submissions to the Standing Committee closed on Friday, 4 July 2025.
The Committee is due to table its report to Parliament by Tuesday 9 September 2025.
For more information:
You can access the fair and reasonable request of the record-breaking number of petitioners here.
You can read my speech urging for the referral motion to be supported here (pp 6-13).
You can read my second reading speech on the Firearms Bill 2024 here.
You can read my third reading speech on the Firearms Bill 2024 here.
You can access my motion in 2024 to have the Firearms Act reviewed by the Standing Committee.