New data from Police shows a big shift in trust and confidence in its work from the firearms community. More than two-thirds (68%) of licence holders now have trust and confidence in Te Tari Pūreke management of firearms licensing (up from 42% in 2022); and 65% of licence holders have confidence in Te Tari Pūreke being effective in controlling the safe use and possession of firearms (up from 45% in 2022). Te Tari Pūreke - Firearms Safety Authority is housed within Police.

“Nicole McKee wants to shift Te Tari Pūreke away from Police because she claims that the firearms community do not trust them. This new survey shows that Te Tari Pūreke has done an excellent job of rebuilding trust with the firearms community. McKee needs to change her mind because she is working on outdated assumptions,” says Philippa Yasbek, Gun Control NZ co-founder.

“Shifting Te Tari Pūreke away from Police would undermine the safety of both the public and frontline police officers. Gun dealers need to know, in real time, if a licence has been suspended because of a Protection Order. Frontline police need to know how many guns are registered to an address. Transferring Te Tari Pūreke out of Police will mean everyone gets out of date information,” says Nik Green, Gun Control NZ co-founder.

“A strong regulator needs to be able to take enforcement action. At the serious end, Police are the only organisation with the firepower to enforce our gun laws. We won’t see strong enforcement of our gun laws if another government department has to negotiate with Police for assistance, against all their other priorities,” says Philippa Yasbek.

Background information supporting this press release

“More than two-thirds…” Big shift in gun owners’ trust in firearms regulator NZ Police media release 20 June 2024 https://www.police.govt.nz/news/release/big-shift-gun-owners%E2%80%99-trust-firearms-regulator

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