NSW and ACT push ahead with gun buyback as other states opt out, leaving farmers facing border dilemmas

New South Wales Premier Chris Minns and the Australian Capital Territory announced they will move forward with a state‑based gun buyback scheme, despite Queensland and the Northern Territory refusing to join the national program. The split threatens to create a patchwork of firearm regulations for agricultural producers, especially those whose properties straddle state borders.

Approximately 25,000 farm businesses in NSW and about 300 in the ACT could be subject to the buyback, while farmers in much of the rest of the country would remain outside the scheme. NSW Farmers president Xavier Martin called for practical consistency in licensing and firearm movement to avoid limiting access to tools essential for farm operations.

The federal government’s sweeping firearm reforms introduced earlier this year after the Bondi terrorist attack aimed at nationally consistent gun laws, tighter imports and expanded background checks. The current state divergence undermines those goals and poses regulatory uncertainty for the agricultural sector.