11 MARCH 2016

Labour Misses the Mark on Firearms

Labour’s call for yet another inquiry into firearms is pointless, a waste of money and will solve nothing, says New Zealand First.

“Criminals have guns and access to guns. Cracking down on law-abiding firearms licence holders will not address that issue,” says Law and Order Spokesperson Ron Mark.

“The solutions are clear. An inquiry is unnecessary, unhelpful, and a waste of time and money.

“The government must crack down on criminals. We need adequate penalties and harsh sentences for illegal ownership and unlawful and criminal use of firearms.

“There are about 1.2 million lawfully owned firearms in New Zealand and a separate, small pool of illegal firearms that circulate within the criminal fraternity. Many of the weapons criminals own have never been available to law abiding licence holders.

“The government’s refusal to take border security seriously means that less than one in four shipping containers are X-rayed or inspected. Entire arsenals of weapons could be coming in and no-one would know.

“Firearms registration doesn’t work, which is why it was Labour did away with it in the 1980s and the law and order select committee in Parliament, chaired by Labour, again rejected it 20 years later.”

ENDS

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