The Council of Licenced Firearms Owners (COLFO) says publication of yet another amended price list for prohibited firearms and parts confirms Government has not got a handle on its own, rushed legislation and that police are struggling to catch up on what firearms are banned and how many there may be.

Police today issued the fourth iteration of the compensation price list, adding another 62 firearms and two parts to the price list. The total of banned firearms eligible for compensation now stands at 415, with 47 parts also on the list.

“It’s a mess, but that’s the inevitable outcome of law being made on the fly,” says COLFO spokesperson Nicole McKee.

“Since the compensation scheme came into effect on June 20, there have been three more lists and more than 100 models of firearms added. Police say this ‘incorporates a number of firearms submitted by the public’.

“This proves that not only did the Government not have vital information needed when it decided on the scope of the ban, but also that the police now have had to greatly expand what’s banned, leaving them struggling to calculate how many banned firearms there may be, or what the total cost of compensation might end up being.”

McKee said New Zealanders deserved clear answers from the Government and police.

“The public were told the ban applied only to military-style, semi-automatic firearms. But the list of banned firearms has gone way beyond that – firearms such as small calibre bolt action rifles and shotguns, which might be used for duck shooting or pest control, are now also on the banned list.

“That was not how the ban was sold to the public. Those who own firearms deserve to know where the line will be drawn. Until law-abiding firearms owners get some fair and reasonable clarity, it’s likely they’ll hold off handing in their firearms.”

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