New South Wales Launches Gun Buyback After Bondi Shooting
Premier Chris Minns launched a 12-month gun buyback scheme offering up to $10,000 per weapon following a mass shooting at Bondi Beach.
The Government of New South Wales launched a 12-month gun buyback scheme on November 2, 2026, in response to a December mass shooting at Bondi Beach that killed 15 people. Co-funded by the state and federal governments, the program offers compensation of up to $10,000 per weapon to reduce firearms in circulation and mitigate threats of terrorism, mass shootings, and domestic violence.
The first phase of the rollout is limited by capacity, with only 2,430 of an estimated 274,000 eligible firearms expected to be surrendered during the first month across six police stations. Alongside the buyback, the government is introducing ownership caps of four firearms for recreational hunters and 10 for professionals, though final regulations for existing owners remain pending.
Opposition to the scheme has come from the NSW Liberals, One Nation, and the Shooting Industry Foundation Australia. Critics argue the program unfairly targets law-abiding citizens and will fail to remove weapons from criminals. Both the Liberals and One Nation have vowed to repeal the scheme and scrap ownership caps if elected in March. Conversely, the NSW Greens support the initiative but have called for an urgent expansion of the program's capacity to handle more surrenders.
