Gun register push after cop killings

Police unions are leading calls for a greater transparency on gun ownership following the murders of two young Queensland police officers on a remote property.

Constable Rachel McCrow, 26, and Constable Matthew Arnold, 29, were gunned down at the property in the western Darling Downs, about three hours west of Brisbane.

Momentum is building for the establishment of a national register of licensed gun owners, with most state governments and police services open to the reform after two young police constables were ­fatally shot in an ambush in Queensland a week ago.

Even traditional opponents of gun reform, such as the federal Nationals and the shooters union, say they support the introduction of a federal database, which would allow police to instantly check if a person holds a gun ­license interstate and what weapons they own.

Constables Rachel McCrow and Matthew Arnold will be farewelled with full police honours at a public memorial for 8000 people on Wednesday, after they were shot dead last Monday at a remote property at Wieambilla, 290km west of Brisbane.

They and two other officers were responding to a NSW-instigated missing person inquiry for former NSW school principal Nathaniel Train when they were ambushed by Train, his brother Gareth, and Gareth’s wife Stacey.

Last week, The Australian revealed Nathaniel Train had a gun ­licence in NSW, and Queensland Police are investigating whether the four officers knew that when they approached the house.

It prompted Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers’ call for a national gun owners register – first recommended in the National Firearms Agreement after the 1996 Port Arthur massacre, but not adopted – has now attracted near-universal support.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, who visited the Chinchilla police station on Monday for the first time since the killings, reiterated that she would bring up a national register at ­national cabinet, after Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll had on Sunday backed the move.

“Anything we (can) do to tighten gun laws in this country would be a good thing,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

Police are investigating whether the young officers knew Nathaniel Train had a gun licence prior to approaching his property.

The Premier has also previously acknowledged Mr Leavers’ proposal that mental health checks be conducted to obtain or renew a gun licence but did not ­indicate whether she would promote the idea.

Mr Leavers, who is also president of the Police Federation of Australia, will push for the mental health check to be on the agenda for national cabinet.

Police ministers in Queensland, NSW, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania indicated they would consider a national register, and SA Police strongly backed the reform.

Queensland Police Minister Mark Ryan said some states had not signed onto the current federal system – the Australian Firearms Information Network, run by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission – and said full national co-operation was needed.

The AFIN is hamstrung by the states having different definitions, licensing rules and restrictions in place.

Shooters Union Australia, which represents sporting, recreational and occupational users of firearms, agreed there was a need for a national database whereby law enforcement can have instant access to gun licences.

President Graham Park said legislation had existed to enable information sharing across the states and territories for decades and all that was needed was the “administrative will”.

But Mr Park said he feared it may take “$100m and another 10 years” to develop a registry and stressed that work should begin on finding workable interfaces between existing state-based ­databases of gun licences.

“It is common sense that police should have real time access on a person’s licence and what (weapons) they might have across Australia, in the same way they can look at someone’s driving licence,’’ he said.

“It’s been a reluctance in the will of administrators to do this, not legitimate gun owners. None of the organisations I have been involved with or sat with on panels talking to government has ever objected,” Mr Park said.

NSW Police Minister Paul Toole said any changes to firearm laws should be considered.

“If there are ways we can work together to make sure every state is the safest it can be, then we ­absolutely should,” he said.

Mr Toole said there was already a review of the NSW Firearms Registry being conducted by former NSW Police assistant commissioner Geoff McKechnie, to ensure that it was working as well as it could.

South Australian Police Minister Joe Szakacs said he would consider the idea of a national firearms registry, and backed a proposal by the federal Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus for a police ministers’ council.

“Co-operation across states and territories is critical in improving law enforcement outcomes across Australia,” Mr Szakacs said.

An SA Police spokeswoman said it supported a national register and “the feasibility of a national register has been discussed at a national level at the Firearms and Weapons Policy Working Group forums”.

West Australian Police Minister Paul Papalia said the state was “currently conducting a complete overhaul of our outdated gun laws”.

“I support any increased sharing of information between agencies and jurisdictions,” Mr Papalia said.

A Tasmanian government spokeswoman agreed that it was important to have “a national ­approach on this issue” and said “we’d support it being discussed at national cabinet”.

Tasmanian police commissioner Donna Adams said: “Tasmania is closely aligned with the National Firearms Agreement and will continue to engage at a national level to support a unified approach”.

A police officer receives a teddy bear from a member of the public at the memorial for his murdered colleagues.

A spokeswoman for the Victorian government said: “We will always consider ways in which we can continue keeping Victorians safe and ensure our laws meet community expectations.”

A Victoria Police spokesman said the use and movement of ­illegal guns was a national problem. We welcome any open discussion on how we can effectively tackle serious and organised firearm-related criminality,” he said.

Federal Nationals leader David Littleproud, who is the member for Maranoa which includes the shooting location, strongly backed Mr Leavers’ call for a national register of gun owners.

“He raised it with me, knowing the Nationals believe strongly that the gun laws we’ve got at the moment are more than adequate. Particularly with primary producers, (guns) are a tool of the trade, necessary for business and safety,” Mr Littleproud said.

“But this is eminently sensible, the sharing of information, to equip our police officers with information they would have in their own state, so they are fully aware of what they’re walking into.”

“This isn’t a radical change, it’s just a sharing of intelligence,” he added.

Mr Littleproud said the change would take leadership through national cabinet, and should be implemented “sooner rather than later”.

“This potentially could save lives into the future. If police officers have the information, knowing what they’re walking into, they’re going to be better equipped and prepared, knowing what lies ahead of them,” Mr Littleproud said.

NSW Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce told Channel 7’s Sunrise program he had “no problems” with waiting to see what an inquiry recommended about a national register, as long as there was “no overarching ridiculous restriction on how we utilise firearms” for work and recreation.

A spokesman for Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil declined to comment.

Additional reporting: Remy Varga, Stephen Lunn, Paul Garvey