Hopes High For Uniform Gun Laws

The Age

Sunday July 21, 1996

NIKI SAVVA

Hopes of achieving uniform national gun laws were high yesterday after both the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Tim Fischer, and the Queensland Premier, Mr Rob Borbidge, said they expected all states to fall into line behind the Federal Government.

Mr Fischer has already turned his attention to implementing the laws, warning police not to conduct vendettas against people they hate in country towns, and promising fair compensation.

The state cabinets of Queensland and Western Australia will meet today to discuss whether to accept the ruling made by the Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, against crimping shotguns.

Mr Howard has suggested holding a referendum if the states do not comply, although - as reported in The Age on Saturday - if only Western Australia holds out, he might not carry out his threat.

But the indications are that Mr Howard's demands will be met by all states for fear of even harsher federal laws after a referendum.

Acquiescence is likely despite comments by the acting Western Australia Premier, Mr Hendy Cowan, that his state would not respond to threats and needed more time to discuss the crimping issue.

Mr Borbridge said on Channel 9's Sunday program yesterday he had spoken by phone with the WA Premier, Mr Richard Court, and had promised to inform him of Queensland's decision this morning.

``But I would expect at the end of the day all states will come into line," he said.

Mr Fischer also said he was quietly confident. ``It's a fair package, and one which we should now get on and get bedded down," he told Channel 10's Meet the Press.

Mr Fischer said the ``big worry" was compliance. He said it was important to ensure there was absolutely fair compensation, and that ``the police don't wreak vendettas on particular people they hate in country towns, and the like".

He promised that there would be appeal mechanisms. ``This has a long way to go in that implementary phase, and I'm determined to see that that's done fairly as well." He considered that holding a referendum would be a last resort because it would be very divisive and very costly. The Government could ill afford to spend $52 million on a referendum ``on the cusp of an agreement being reached".

``So, fingers crossed for tomorrow," he said.

Mr Fischer also took the media to task over its coverage of the gun lobby since the Port Arthur massacre, saying they had twisted and turned the debate to make it as hard as possible for the National Party. He considered some of the reporting had been mischievous.

``The media has to accept its responsibility in adding to the burden of the debate," Mr Fischer said.

He said stories should have been reported sensibly and ``not been given the currency every Saturday, every Sunday night as if there is war out there on the streets".

He believed there had, in fact, been peaceful demonstrations on both sides in what was a controversial and emotional setting.