The New South Wales Liberal party has vowed to freeze the state's gun buyback program and scrap ownership limits for farmers if elected next year, reversing its own vote less than a year after supporting the measures in response to the Bondi Beach terror attack on December 14, 2025. The policy shift comes as the party faces a damaging anti-corruption probe and growing electoral pressure from One Nation, raising concerns that public safety is being subordinated to political expediency.
NSW was the first state to sign up to the national gun buyback promised after Bondi. The state Liberals voted with the government in support of gun caps and a buyback last year. Now they're walking away from that commitment.
A Reversal Under Pressure
NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley described the move as a backflip by the state Liberal party. "We know that after Bondi, [the NSW Liberals] stood up and they voted for strong gun laws," she said. "Months later, they're walking away from that decision." Catley didn't mince words about what's driving the change. "We know that One Nation wants weaker gun laws. Now the Liberals and Nationals are following them down that road. New South Wales cannot afford a Coalition that lets One Nation write its policy on guns. The safety of our community is too important for that."
Opposition leader Kellie Sloane rejected the criticism, insisting the party's original support was conditional. "In the aftermath of [the terror attack at] Bondi, we offered bipartisanship support, but it was conditional on feedback from stakeholders and if we saw any unintended consequences, we should get back to the drawing board," she said. Ms Sloane said she found it "entirely offensive" that people would criticise her for coming up with what she described as a better plan. "While we spent hundreds of millions of dollars taking guns off of law abiding citizens, we are failing to recognise the real threat in our communities and we just can't afford to do that," she said.
Ms Sloane promised an elected Liberals-Nationals government would have a commission of inquiry to look at gun reform "to make sure we are targeting the terrorists, we're targeting organised crime, we are taking guns out of dangerous hands." The party says the changes would depend on the results of that commission and stakeholder feedback.
Political Crisis Deepens
The gun policy reversal comes as the Liberals contend with multiple crises in about six months before the NSW state election. A high-profile anti-corruption probe into the actions of a right-wing Liberal party faction has cast a pall on the Liberals' election campaign. This week, ICAC's gaze is likely to feel even closer for state opposition leader Kellie Sloane, as the anti-corruption commission hears from one of her most senior parliamentary colleagues.
Liberal frontbencher James Griffin this month announced he would not seek re-election for the seat of Manly, which has been held by the Liberals for almost 20 years. Ms Sloane was asked to respond to reports an anonymous MP described the NSW Liberal party as "sleepwalking to defeat." She said, "I'm not going to comment on an anonymous, unattributed quotes."
One Nation's Growing Influence
The embattled Liberals must also contend with growing support for One Nation, with Premier Chris Minns conceding the party was perhaps Labor's biggest threat. He told parliament earlier this week, "If the government falls in March of next year, it's likely to be a One Nation-led government." He added, "That's the grim numbers as we're looking at it."
The issue has become hot political fodder in about six months out from the NSW state election, with Ms Sloane repeatedly accusing the Labor government of losing control of Sydney streets. Sydney's south and south-west have borne the brunt of a spate of tit-for-tat violence linked to underworld tensions over the past 18 months, with innocent parties falling victim to bungled operations.
The state government this week introduced legislation to parliament aimed at targeting criminal networks and bolstering police powers to disrupt underworld groups. Under the reforms, young people charged with some offences linked to organised crime would be tried or sentenced as adults in the district or supreme courts, where they face tougher maximum penalties.
Why This Matters:
The Liberal party's reversal on gun safety measures less than a year after the Bondi Beach terror attack raises serious questions about whether electoral politics is trumping public safety. When a major party abandons its own recent vote on a matter as fundamental as gun regulation—particularly under pressure from a far-right challenger—it suggests policy is being driven by polling rather than evidence. The timing is especially troubling: the anti-corruption probe and One Nation's rise appear to be reshaping the Liberals' platform on an issue with direct consequences for community safety. If gun policy becomes a bargaining chip in electoral strategy, the framework of regulated firearm ownership that has protected Australians for decades could weaken. Communities deserve gun laws grounded in public health evidence and the lessons of past tragedies, not expedient political repositioning.