Preventing the import of the Adler A110 shotgun will only hurt legal firearm holders, said the owner of a Dubbo gun store.
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Gunpro’s Martin Bourke said on Thursday the debate should be on people using and importing firearms illegally, not those who will be licensed to use the shotgun.
The overturn of the ban has been supported by Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton.
A temporary ban was placed on importing the shotgun last year by the Australian Government. For the ban to be overturned, a consensus has to be reached from all the states and territories.
The issue arose in Parliament this week when Senator David Leyonhjelm said he would consider supporting the government's bills cracking down on unions in exchange for lifting the ban on Adler gun imports.
Mr Coulton said the shotgun would help farmers control feral animals.
“It’s just another tool of the trade like an iPad, a chainsaw or a shovel,” Mr Coulton said.
“Even though this gun has the capacity to be dangerous, in the wrong hands so would any of the weapons on the market. That definitely doesn’t make it a dangerous weapon.”
Under the Nationals Firearms Agreement, guns are placed into one of four categories: A, B, C or D depending on their capability. The Adler A110 is currently classified as A, making it comparatively easier to acquire.
Gun Control Australia wants the Adler either banned completely or classified in the restrictive category C. Their petition to outlaw it completely has attracted more than 16,000 signatures.
However, Mr Bourke said a permanent ban was not the solution.
“It’s like ‘oh we’ve got a problem with cocaine let’s make it harder for for chemists to sell prescription drugs’,” he said.
“Don’t make life harder for us, make it harder for the criminals.”