What are Australia's gun laws?

A father and son launched an anti-semitic terror attack at a Hanukkah celebration, firing into crowds at the popular sun spot.

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Naveed Akram, 24, and his father Sajid, 50, have been identified as the attackers and, as of Monday morning, 27 are still in hospital with wounds.

Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese has condemned the “pure evil” attack and has pledged to toughen gun laws, which have come under scrutiny despite being among the toughest of their kind in the world.

What are Australia’s gun laws?

Australia currently has some of the toughest gun laws in the world after restrictions were tightened following the massacre in Port Arthur, Tasmania, in April 1996.

On that occasion, lone attacker Martin Bryant killed 35 people with semiautomatic weapons, which led then-prime minister John Howard to push for reforms.

Under the National Firearms Agreement, private ownership became restricted of semi-automatic rifles, semi-automatic shotguns and pump-action shotguns, as well as uniform firearms licensing.

Guns were put into four categories, with bands C and D being the most restrictive, and covering semi-automatic guns. Most licence holders and recreational shooters have access to A and B licences, which covers low and medium powered shotguns and rifles.

Anyone wanting to buy a gun is subject to a 28 day waiting period when a background check is completed. Applicants must have a “justifiable reason” to own a gun, while thousands of guns can regularly be handed in during amnesty drives.

Mr Howard had not been in power long when the massacre occurred and faced significant opposition to introducing the measures but was able to push the measure through.

Since then, Australia has had one of the world’s lowest gun homicide rates, per capita, of 0.09 per 100,000 people - compared to 1.1 in the UK and 5.7 in the United States.

And the number of mass shootings dropped from 11 in the decade to 1996, to just one from then until present - which was a murder-suicide involving a family of four in 2014.

Former US President Barack Obama has cited Australia as an example to follow and said in 2015: "When Australia had a mass killing - I think it was in Tasmania - about 20 years ago, it was just so shocking the entire country said: 'Well, we're going to completely change our gun laws'. And they did, and it hasn't happened since.”

But, despite the laws, there are now four million guns held legally in the country, which is more than in 1995 - the year before the Port Arthur tragedy.

Mr Howard, who left office in 2007, has now said once more that more measures are needed.

Do the Australian laws need strengthening?

It is felt that restrictions drawn up nearly 30 years ago need to be strengthened with the number of people able to buy guns and occurrences such as the Bondi Beach shooting possible.

Roland Browne, vice president of Gun Control Australia, told ABC: "In 1996, the objective was that every gun that a shooter wants to obtain has to have a good reason, and it has to be more difficult to obtain for the second gun and for any subsequent guns.

"That seems to have fallen down completely, when people in the suburbs of Sydney or Melbourne or anywhere else in Australia can have multiple numbers of guns."

Speaking a few days before the Bondi Beach shooting, Mr Howard said: “[My] general view is that there should be no weakening of existing laws and, where sensibly considered, they should be strengthened.

“It would be a matter for individual state governments as to whether mental health checks should be strengthened in a way that does not weaken existing safeguards.”

Now after the shooting, New South Wales premier Chris Minns has questioned why Australians who do not work in agriculture would need such weapons.

He said: “We want to make sure that prospective reform and change in New South Wales has a lasting impact.

“If you’re not a farmer, if you’re not involved in agriculture, why do you need these massive weapons that put the public in danger and make life dangerous and difficult for New South Wales police?”

What new gun laws could come into Australia?

The national cabinet in Australia has agreed to strengthen gun laws, following a meeting of federal, state and territory leaders.

Potential reforms to strengthen John Howard’s laws could see:

• Only Australians allowed to hold a gun licence,
• A limited number of guns can be bought,
• Licences could expire, to allow further checks on owners’ suitability.

Mr Albanese has pledged to push ahead, although the current prime minister is mindful that the legal processes must be adhered to, and that outdated governmental systems can prove a challenge. “In some cases, some state jurisdictions still had paper identification… that was what we were dealing with,” the prime minister said.

He added: “We are responding in a really practical way. If there’s more that can be done, we will do it. We will do whatever is necessary.”