New Tasmanian crossbencher Carlo Di Falco says gun law reform will be one of his bargaining chips
Mr Di Falco claimed a seat in Lyons with 6.7 per cent of first-preference votes.
He said the party's priorities on gun law reform included amendments about silencers, mandatory three-month sentences for those who steal guns, and to extend the ability to hunt feral animals.
He said deer-culling programs involving helicopters and aerial shooting were not the best way to control fallow deer.
"It makes more sense to allow shooters to go in and clean up the same deer with one or two shots, and not only that, so the meat's not wasted," he said.
The Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service has said the aerial shooting program has been successful in recent years.
Stephen Bendle, an advocacy adviser for the Alannah & Madeline Foundation said gun violence was still an issue in Australia.
"It is still something we need to be vigilant about and [gun control] can't be taken for granted," Mr Bendle said.
The foundation was set up by Walter Mikac, whose wife Nannette and daughters Alannah and Madeline were murdered in the 1996 Port Arthur massacre.
Mr Di Falco said the incident was a tragedy.
"But that was that was 30 years ago … and from my personal point of view, people who keep on milking this tragedy get points, it's morally reprehensible," he said.
Mr Bendle said that type of language was disrespectful, especially in Tasmania.
He said gun safety advocates knew there were legitimate uses for guns in Australia, such as on farms.
"However, the 97 per cent of the Tasmanian, and in fact the Australian population, who don't have any connection with firearms need to be respected," Mr Bendle said.
"Just because a small percentage of Australians have a recreation activity, that shouldn't lead to the proliferation of firearms."
Whichever party forms government after the recent state election, it will need support from crossbenchers.
Mr Di Falco said that in his negotiations with the Liberals and Labor, he would push for reforms not only to gun laws, but also to telecommunications and health.
He said he did not want to jeopardise his bargaining position by disclosing who he intended to support.
For the Liberals to form government, they need the support of four crossbenchers, Labor would need the support of eight.
And gun law reform is a difficult issue in Tasmania, as the Liberals found out in 2018 when they abandoned an election promise to make changes to gun laws, citing the community's "deeply held concerns" about safety and confidence in the law.
A Shooters, Fishers and Farmers bill is expected to be debated in NSW parliament this week, which, if passed, would enshrine a "right to hunt", and open up more Crown land for hunting.
NSW Premier Chris Minns said his government would not allow gun restrictions to go backwards.
"We will not be voting to water down gun laws in NSW, that's very important they stay consistent following the horror of the Port Arthur massacre," Mr Minns said.
Mr Di Falco said he did not understand the opposition to the NSW bill.
"All they're doing is letting the shooters go in and clean up feral animals, I would have thought even the Greens would have had agreed to that," he said.
Mr Bendle said the changes in NSW were worrying.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

News.com.au
20 minutes ago
- News.com.au
WA Teal backs $3300 handout, GST hike scheme as key economic driver
Teal independent Kate Chaney has floated a radical plan to hand everyone $3,300 a year in exchange for a hike in the GST. Ms Chaney has been working with Australian economist Richard Holden on a proposal to raise the GST from 10 to 15 per cent, and apply the tax to education, food and health. In exchange for the tax hike, every adult would be paid $3300 - effectively wiping out the GST expenses on someone's first $22,000 of spending. Ms Chaney and Professor Holden's plan has been submitted to the federal government to be considered at the productivity-focused economic roundtable, a summit to be held in Canberra from August 19 to 21. 'GST is an efficient tax – it is hard to avoid – and with lower and middle-income groups potentially better off under this proposal, it can be progressive,' Ms Chaney said. 'Unlike personal income tax, it doesn't hamper productivity. 'Intergenerational inequity is built into our tax system - younger generations are facing the growing burden of funding an ageing population and will bear the cost of future interest payments to cover the structural deficit forecast for the next decade.' The WA MP's plan has been costed and would raise an additional $95.2bn for the government in its first year of operation, minus the $3300 rebate to every adult. Low and middle-income earners would be up to $371 better off, but the top-20 per cent of earners would be $2200 worse off. All that leaves the government with an additional $24bn a year. The Prime Minister and Treasurer have been hesitant in their language around GST reform leading up to the economic roundtable meetings. 'I expect that there'll be a whole range of ideas put forward, much of which is contradictory with each other,' Anthony Albanese said this week. 'It doesn't mean that they're government decisions we're making, because they're not.' But Mr Albanese was more explicit in his language on Thursday. 'The only tax policy that we're implementing is the one that we took to the election,' he said. While the current GST scheme is considered regressive, Professor Holden's plan is pitched as progressive. 'I'm a supporter of progressive taxation,' Mr Albanese told Sky News in July. 'Consumption taxes, by definition, are regressive in their nature. So that's something that you know doesn't fit with the agenda.' Parliamentary Budget Office costings of Professor Holden and Ms Chaney's scheme show the bottom 60 per cent of income earners would be better with the GST hike and $3300 rebate. 'Our proposal would make our taxation system more efficient, make our economy more dynamic and provide the impetus for productivity growth,' Professor Holden said. 'It is widely accepted that the GST is an efficient tax, but it is thought to be regressive. 'This plan shows that it doesn't have to be that way. By providing every adult Australian with a $22,000 GST-free threshold the GST can be both efficient and progressive.' The government has promoted the roundtable meetings as being focused on productivity. The Australian Council of Social Services says the country's lagging productivity is widening inequality. In the council's submission to the roundtable, chief executive Cassandra Goldie calls for reform to the tax system to raise more revenue, reduce inequality and drive action to address climate change. 'For too long now, people with plenty have been showered with tax breaks that pull investment away from productive purposes and rob essential public services of the revenue they need,' Dr Goldie said. The council is advocating for changes to employment opportunities and streamlining income support. 'The extra revenue we need to fund care and community services, schools, and an income support system that protects people from poverty must come from those with the most capacity to pay - not those doing it toughest,' Dr Goldie said.

ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Legal academic Alan Boulton granted bail over child abuse material charges
A former judge charged after allegedly showing child abuse images to university students has been granted bail and plans to travel to Europe on an expensive trip. Alan Boulton, 74, was charged with three counts of possessing child abuse material after an alleged incident at Monash University's law chambers in the Melbourne CBD in February this year. Mr Boulton's case was brought before the Melbourne Magistrates' Court for the first time on Thursday for a filing hearing. His barrister, Holly Baxter, said her client had been "up front" with investigators, and was seeking permission to travel to Europe while on bail. "He booked the trip. A serious amount of money has been spent on that trip," Ms Baxter said. Ms Baxter said Mr Boulton had travelled overseas during the police investigation and had returned with no issues. The condition was granted by Magistrate Brett Sonnet, who adjourned the case until November, and ordered police to file a brief of evidence by September 18. Details of the allegations against Mr Boulton were not aired in court on Thursday. Victoria Police has previously said that "inappropriate images were inadvertently displayed during a university lecture in the CBD on Wednesday 5 February". Mr Boulton did not attend court in-person, instead appearing via video link wearing a suit and tie. He is yet to enter a plea to the charges. Mr Boulton, a former senior deputy director of the Fair Work Commission and Order of Australia recipient, was charged in July after a five-month investigation by Victoria Police. Properties in the Melbourne suburb of Middle Park and in Sydney were raided by police during the investigation. Monash University said it referred the matter to police and suspended Mr Boulton immediately. He is no longer employed by the university.

ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Senator Charlotte Walker says misogyny 'part of the job', but politics is 'worth it'
Despite being told to "get back in the kitchen" and facing comments from Pauline Hanson about barely being out of "nappies", Australia's youngest senator Charlotte Walker insists it's worth it to represent young people. The 21-year-old celebrated her birthday on election night and snared the unlikely sixth spot as senator for South Australia after scoring the third spot on the ballot. The Labor senator recently posted a 'day in the life' video on social media, which was later taken down after facing criticism. "Some of the comments have been really hard, definitely a lot of misogyny," she told ABC Radio Adelaide's Breakfast program. Ms Walker said she did not condone that behaviour, but insisted the job was worth it. "That's hard to be said to me as a young woman, but it's the job," she said. "All you can do is continue forward and know that you're doing it for the right reasons. "Quite frankly, it's worth all the criticism. It can be hard, but I love it, truly." Ms Walker also recently had an exchange with One Nation senator Pauline Hanson, after making what she said was "a pretty strong statement towards Pauline" about Ms Hanson's views against net zero. "She's no sooner out of bloody university and out of her nappies than she's telling me I don't know what the hell I'm talking about, when I've been on the floor of parliament for the last nine years," Ms Hanson told Sky News. Ms Walker said the senate was made up of a diverse mix of views and criticism was to be expected. "That's her view, my view is that we're seeing the effects of climate change and we need to be having conversations about why net zero is so important and why we need to be working towards a full transition to renewables," she said. "She's entitled to her view, but I happen to disagree." Ms Walker said she was grateful to have seen a willingness from her party to listen to her. Ms Walker said having support systems was important, and that she had met with Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young and former senator Natasha Stott Despoja, who have both previously held the title of youngest woman to ever be voted in by the Australian public. "They've actually both reached out to me," she said. "It was really useful, [Natasha's] perspective of some of the stuff she went through when she was newly elected, it just felt like a lot of what she went through, I was going through the exact same thing."