Australia passes tougher laws on guns, hate crimes after Bondi shooting

SYDNEY - Australia has enacted new laws for a national gun buyback, tighter background checks for gun licences and a crackdown on hate crimes, in response to the

country’s worst mass shooting in decades

at a Jewish festival in December.

Two Bills for stricter gun control and anti-hate measures passed the House of Representatives and Senate late on Jan 20 during a special sitting of Parliament.

The gun control laws passed with the support of the Greens party despite opposition from the conservative Liberal-National coalition. The anti-hate laws passed with support from the Liberal party.

Introducing the gun reforms, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said individuals with “hate in their hearts and guns in their hands”, carried out the Dec 14 attack at Bondi Beach that killed 15 people.

“The tragic events at Bondi demand a comprehensive response from government,” Mr Burke said. “As a government, we must do everything we can to counter both the motivation and the method.”

The father and son gunmen allegedly behind the attack on Jewish Hanukkah celebrations used powerful firearms that were legally obtained, despite the son being previously examined by Australia’s spy agency.

Parliament recalled early for special session

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese

recalled Parliament early

from its summer break for this week’s special two-day session to toughen curbs after the shooting shocked the nation and prompted calls for more action on gun control and anti-Semitism.

The proposed gun control measures enable the largest national buyback scheme since a similar campaign after a 1996 massacre in Tasmania’s Port Arthur, in which a lone gunman killed 35 people.

They also toughen firearm import laws as well as background checks for firearm licences issued by Australian states, making use of information from the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation.

Australia had a record 4.1 million firearms in 2025, the government said on Jan 18, with more than 1.1 million of those in New South Wales, its most populous state and the site of the Bondi attack.

“The sheer number of firearms currently circulating within the Australian community is unsustainable,” Mr Burke said.

The Bill passed without the support of the opposition coalition, with a vote of 96-45 in the Lower House, and 38-26 in the Senate.

“This Bill reveals the contempt the government has for the million gun owners of Australia,” said Shadow Attorney-General Andrew Wallace of the Liberals.

“The prime minister has failed to recognise that guns are tools of trade for so many Australians.”

Hate crime penalties stepped up

A second Bill steps up penalties for hate crimes, such as jail terms up to 12 years when a religious official or preacher is involved, and allows bans on groups deemed to spread hate.

The Bill, which also provides new powers to cancel or refuse visas for those who spread hate, passed the Lower House by a 116-7 margin and the Senate, 38-22.

It won support from Liberal party lawmakers after ruling Labor struck a deal to include changes such as a requirement the government consult the opposition leader on the listing and delisting of extremist organisations.

The Liberals’ coalition partners abstained from the vote and the Greens opposed it, arguing it would have a “chilling effect” on political debate and protest.

“This Bill targets those that support violence, in particular violence targeted at a person because of their immutable attributes,” said Attorney-General Michelle Rowland.

Such conduct was not only criminal but sowed the seed of extremism leading to terrorism, she added. Police say the alleged Bondi gunmen were inspired by the Islamic State militant group.

The measures were originally planned for a single Bill, but backlash from both the coalition and the Greens forced the government to split the package and drop provisions for an offence of racial vilification.

In its own reforms, New South Wales limits individuals to possession of four guns, and beefs up the power of police to curb protests during designated terrorist attacks. REUTERS