COLFO calls on licensed firearm owners for a flood of select committee submissions to strengthen and lock in the new Arms Act Bill for the next 50 years. The reforms promise relief from red tape and harassment, but fall short on reinstating semi-automatics, fully separating licensing from the Police, and ending warrantless searches.

COLFO spokesperson Hugh Devereux-Mack says the Bill will vastly improve the quality of life for licensed firearm owners.

“The red tape, harassment, and treatment of licensed firearm owners as second-class citizens will be addressed with this Bill. This is our chance to lock in fair treatment and protection of people with a genuine use for firearms and turn the focus of regulators and Police on criminals.

“We urge every licensed firearm owner to submit to the Select Committee, explaining why they have a licence, and the benefits and challenges of the proposed changes,” says Devereux-Mack.

He says COLFO is “very disappointed” that the Firearms Licensing Authority was not being fully separated from Police, but the removal of Police staff would ensure more independence.

“The bureaucratic estimation of the cost of separation is a nonsense number, but we can understand the Government not wanting to put good money after bad.

Our trust in Police has suffered irreparable damage since 2019. Police evaded accountability for operational shortcomings that had them grant a terrorist a firearms license, and then instead blamed law-abiding owners. Their warrantless search powers stripped licence holders of basic rights afforded even to known gang members. And repeated instances of intimidation and overreach have compounded this erosion of confidence. As such, we welcome the removal of Police from the regulatory authority."

He says there will be disappointment in the community over failure to reinstate legality for semi-automatic rifles.

“This Bill is not a ground-up rewrite we were promised by Act, and clearly concessions have been made to appease the coalition partners at the expense of evidence-based law-making. It is a fair reset, clearing away most of the unfair and unhelpful focus on licensed firearm owners, rather than criminals. We hope that new pathways will be considered for experienced firearm owners with a demonstrated need for specialty firearms, and more stringent licence conditions will be explored as part of the select committee process” he says.

Devereux-Mack says COLFO is disappointed at the absence of a refined definition of a 'fit and proper licensed firearm owner', which has been used to bully and target law-abiding people, and would like police to be stripped of their ability to conduct warrantless searches of licensed firearm owners' homes.

“The single-most common complaint from Licensed Firearm Owners is unfair and intimidating treatment by Police. This Bill signals a change in attitude, finally restoring some of the respect and mana that was stolen from licensed firearm owners who are among the most vetted, and law-abiding citizens in New Zealand."

About COLFO

The Council of Licensed Firearm Owners (COLFO), established in 1996, is New Zealand’s largest voluntary shooting-related organisation, representing thousands of responsible firearm owners. COLFO champions sensible firearms policies and the rights of its members to use firearms legally, safely, and responsibly.

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