Setting the Record Straight
Australians are rightfully proud of our democratic society which values the freedom of all its law abiding citizens.
The Shooting Industry Foundation of Australia supports a framework that provides for public safety with regulation that is proven to be effective.
SIFA is committed to working within the complex regulatory environment of 9 Australian jurisdictions and we also advocate for improvements to government business systems.
Almost all of Australian government firearms transactions, from before importation up to distribution to Licensed Firearms Dealers, are paper based.
This means enormous waste of time, duplication of effort, constant human errors and unreliability of supply of firearms for Australian shooters.
We’ve worked for five years now to inform politicians at state and federal level about this issue, which has resulted in the recall of the Commonwealth’s Firearms Industry Reference Group and prompted the Home Affairs Permit Process Review – both of which are ongoing.
SIFA’s work here does not extend to the licensing, permitting and records management of Australia’s licensed shooters, and reports that SIFA has called for a National Registry are inaccurate. SIFA has, however, campaigned in three elections since 2017 calling for Firearms Registries to be fixed.
All users of firearms registries – police, wholesalers and importers, licensed firearms dealers and licensed firearms owners have significant and justified criticisms of the states’ registries.
These registries are the primary mechanism that governments say keep Australians safe. If this is the case, registries require immediate review and investment.
If it proves that firearms registries do not effectively contribute to community safety, questions about their relevance should continue to be raised.
