Politics in Focus

By Tim Bannister 

National firearms database build begins 

A national firearms database construction has started requiring all states and territories to remediate or rebuild their databases. The federal government has said it will cost about $160 million and take four years to achieve. Essentially, it will be a ninth database that is fed from the other eight and include an ‘AFIN’ – an Australian Firearm’s Identification Number specific to the type of firearm. This is a separate identifier from the serial number of a firearm that is unique to each firearm. 

The national database and the AFIN are two distinct projects, but it is envisaged they will be integrated to help authorities identify, trace and prevent ‘leakage’ of firearms, or in other words firearms disappearing off a state’s database and its location becoming unknown. 

The construction of the national database will be a mammoth task, as the lack of accuracy of the state and territories databases is obvious and a fact many firearm owners have experienced themselves. The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission told SSAA Queensland there are 13 million firearms on the registers, but there are only three million firearms in the country. States and their police firearms units to date have been ignoring the fact that their databases are imperfect and unreliable, but with the offer of millions of dollars of federal government money (our taxpayer dollars) they have finally agreed to attempt to rebuild their records. In the case of Tasmania, it has now been revealed they don’t even have a computer-based firearms database; it is still a physical paper and metal filing cabinets records system. 

We met with the Federal Attorney-General’s Department and firearms policy Director Vanessa Paterson to ask for more detail on the national database build and the unique firearms identification number. 

“We are expecting the national database to offer near real time data and follow the movement of the firearm throughout its lifespan,” Mrs Paterson said. “It will be a stepped process with high-level business plans to change each state’s database to align with exporting into the new database. There will be no adlibbing in entering details on a firearm. Instead, it will be drop-down fields. 

“It is hoped the new database will identify any [illegal] diversion of the firearm.” 

The first question we pose as to whether we support any new legislation or monitoring of licensed firearms owners is, “Is there a public safety benefit that does not unjustly burden our members?” And given that new laws are often the knee-jerk reaction to a criminal incident such as the Wieambilla religiously motivated terrorist murders of two police officers and a neighbour, would they actually have stopped the incident from happening? 

The answer to the first may rely on what, if any implications, it has to the licensed firearm owner.  

Will a new and ninth database prevent crimes in the future? Given that it is incredibly rare that a crime is committed by a licensed firearms owner with a registered firearm, probably no. But it should, in theory, prevent firearm locations being lost or diverted, either by poor record keeping by the authorities or providing deliberately false information, as a now-gaoled rogue NSW firearms dealer was doing. He was illegally selling handguns to organised crime figures but said he had sold the firearms interstate. Authorities were none the wiser until a criminal left one of the handguns at a Sydney crime scene as an act of showing off and the firearm was traced back to the dealer. 

It will be a long and expensive roll-out of the database. History says it is a sure bet that it will cost more than the budgeted $160 million. Throughout the build we will continue to inform you of any developments and work to ensure you, our members, are not disadvantaged by the process and are treated appropriately.