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Adler import a step closer as NSW agrees on reclassification

The Adler can fire seven rounds in 11 seconds.

The Adler can fire seven rounds in 11 seconds. Photo: AAP

The controversial Adler shotgun is a step closer to being allowed into Australia after a decision by the New South Wales government.

The Commonwealth currently does not allow Adler A110 shotguns with a magazine capacity of more than five rounds into Australia.

The federal government has said states and territories must agree on a new classification before it removes the import restriction.

The nation’s justice ministers could not reach a deal in October, with NSW wanting the gun more readily available than other states.

But it is understood that NSW has fallen into line with other jurisdictions and is prepared to reclassify the gun as a category D weapon.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said if states and territories agreed on that category, sales of the gun would be tightly controlled.

“Different proposals have been mentioned but if, for example, lever action guns with a magazine of more than five rounds were classified as category D, that would be available to very few users at all,” Mr Turnbull said.

“Basically feral pest controllers, generally working for governments.

“When agreement is reached, then the import rules will be changed so that they conform with the classification.

Adler

Malcolm Turnbull has spoken defiantly about the Adler ban. Photo: AAP

“We’ve imposed the ban, the import ban, we’ve maintained the ban, pending that agreement.”

Mr Turnbull will meet with premiers and chief ministers at the Council of Australian Governments meeting on Friday.

Furore over the Adler A110 peaked last month when Labor accused the Coalition of a “guns for votes” deal to scrap the import ban with pro-firearm crossbench senator David Leyonhjelm.

What’s the fuss about?

Leyonhjelm guns

Leyonhjelm accused government of breaking a deal on guns. Photo: ABC

The Adler is a brand of shotgun that uses a lever action to load fresh cartridges into the barrel.

Some Adler A110 models can fire more than five cartridges per magazine, which some shooters argue makes the weapon more effective when hunting pests like wild pigs.

Others disagree and say shotguns are not even worth using when hunting feral animals. Either way, lever-action shotguns are not as fast or ‘rapid-fire’ as pump-action shotguns.

Why is the Adler controversial?

The Adler has become the subject of fierce debate for a few reasons:

  • The Adler A110 has a magazine capacity of seven rounds, with another round in the barrel.
  • Gun control lobby groups argue that the five-shot Adler can be modified to be able to hold up to 11 cartridges.
  • The Adler’s lever action has been described as relatively fast-moving, allowing shots to be fired quickly.
  • According to Australia’s gun laws, the Adler is classified in the least restrictive gun ownership category.

john howard

Howard toughened gun laws following Port Arthur massacre. Photo: AAP

The reason the Adler is in category A is because lever action shotguns were not reclassified when former Liberal PM John Howard toughened up gun laws through the 1996 National Firearms Agreement.

They were not considered worthy of attention because unlike pump-action shotguns, lever action shotguns did not have a high profile in crime.

The Adler shotgun was popularised by Robert Nioa, the son-in-law of maverick independent MP Bob Katter.

Mr Nioa tried to import thousands of Turkish-made seven-shot Adlers but when a temporary ban was implemented they were remanufactured to become five-shot Adlers.

Gun control advocates consider the Adler’s availability a significant weakening of Australia’s gun control regime, which they argue has put a stop to mass killings and reduced firearm deaths in this country.

Martin Place

Government reignited gun debate after the Martin Place siege. Photo: AAP

For those on the other side of the debate, the gun simply updates century-old technology and they consider its current temporary ban an overreaction.

Why is there a ban?

Following the Martin Place siege, the federal government announced a review of the National Firearms Agreement, stating that the 1996 agreement “may not accurately reflect the current operation of the legal firearms market”.

Part of the review requires the states and territories to reach a consensus on how to reclassify the Adler.

But the states could not reach agreement and in response, the Federal Police and Justice Minister Michael Keenan introduced a temporary ban on all imports of lever-action shotguns with a magazine capacity of more than five rounds.

-with Lucy Barbour, ABC

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