SSAA National welcomes the Firearm theft in Australia 2008-09 report from the Australian Institute of Criminology released this week.

This report, as we understand, is the final in a series of firearm theft reports that began analysing supplied data from Australia’s police from each state and territory in the mid-2000s.

SSAA National Spokesperson Tim Bannister said it was important that information like this was collected as it provided valuable insight into crime in Australia, while also pointing to the ongoing need for firearm responsibility in our community.

SSAA National, which has more than 134,000 members across the country, has been proactively promoting firearm safety within its membership for many years with the Secure Your Gun, Secure Your Sport program.

This campaign has been running since 1999 and was highly commended by the Minister for Home Affairs, the Hon Brendan O’Connor. The Minister recognised the work by SSAA National to coordinate with the firearms industry to bring firearm owners the National Gun Safe Voucher program. This initiative provided people with access to discounted storage facilities for their firearms, giving them the opportunity to ensure they met legislative requirements.

Just this month, the SSAA National Secure Your Gun, Secure Your Sport program has received a Certificate of Merit from the Australian Institute of Criminology in the annual Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Awards.

The $1000 prize money received with this award will be reinvested into firearm safety education programs for our members.