James Campbell: Jacinta Allan’s machete ban is likely too little, too late

Sometimes in politics the only thing worse than doing nothing is being forced into action. The Premier’s hasty machete ban is no exception.

Poor old Jacinta Allan.

As the leader of the first government in Australia to ban the sale and possession of machetes she ought to be basking in the gratitude of Victorians.

But just as she was forced to move on bail laws after the Herald Sun’s ‘Suburbs under Siege’ campaign highlighted the wave of home invasions, she has again been forced into action.

Today’s hasty u-turn will see the banning of machete sales from midday on Wednesday, in this case caused by youths armed with the weapons who terrorised Northland shopping centre on Sunday afternoon.

The policy reversal is only partial – the possession of machetes will still remain legal until September as intended under the legislation passed last week, if no other reason than an immediate ban on their ownership would make criminals of anyone who has one in their back shed.

Today’s hasty u-turn will see the banning of machete sales from midday on Wednesday, in this case caused by youths armed with the weapons who terrorised Northland shopping centre on Sunday afternoon. Picture: X

As a matter of optics Allan’s instinct would probably have been to stick to her time frame.

Sometimes in politics the only thing worse than doing nothing is being forced into action, something the premier has demonstrated she understands by her stubborn refusal to step-back from the folly of the Suburban Rail Loop.

The pictures from Northland were just too awful however.

The government needed to be seen to be doing ‘something’ immediately.

Even if it is questionable how much difference that something will make.

Because it is of course already unlawful to take a machete into a shopping centre for the purpose of attacking a rival gang – even Highpoint – under legislation passed more than 30 years ago.

What Allan’s legislation passed last week does is require people who need machetes for a lawful purpose to apply for a permit to own one and to make their possession illegal for everyone who does not.

Whether this will make a great deal of difference remains to be seen given the machete-wielding community is by its nature unlikely to be that concerned about the law and they will still be for sale in other parts of Australia.

Originally published as James Campbell: Jacinta Allan’s machete ban is likely too little, too late