Australian government says firearms hit a record high in 2025

SYDNEY – The number of firearms in Australia reached an all-time high of more than four million in 2025, the centre-left government reported on Jan 18, a day after announcing it would introduce a gun reform Bill in Parliament following the Bondi massacre.

There were a record 4,113,735 guns in Australia in 2025, with 1,158,654 of those in the most populous state of New South Wales, where the Bondi attack took place, the government said, citing Department of Home Affairs data.

The Labor government on Jan 17 said Parliament, recalled from its summer break, would debate Bills next week to authorise a gun buyback and lower the threshold for hate speech prosecutions – measures drafted in the wake of the

Dec 14, 2025, shooting

that killed 15 at a Hanukkah celebration.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said there were now more guns in Australia than at the time of a 1996 shooting that killed 35 and prompted a gun buyback scheme by the conservative government of then Prime Minister John Howard.

“The deadly anti-Semitic terrorist attack at Bondi Beach is a national tragedy which can never be allowed to happen again,” Mr Burke said, adding that the government was committed to “getting dangerous guns off our streets”.

In response to the Bondi massacre, New South Wales passed state laws in December banning private individuals from owning more than four firearms, with exemptions for farmers, who can have up to 10.

The shooting has also sparked calls for efforts to tackle anti-Semitism in Australia. Police say the alleged gunmen were inspired by militant group ISIS. REUTERS