The SSAA has called the bluff of the ABC’s Q&A program and requested that its Fact Check department investigate a misleading statement by host Tony Jones regarding the legalities of the firearm used in the Sydney Siege.
Grilling Victorian Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie about her support of the shooting sports on Monday night’s program, Mr Jones interrupted the Senator numerous times when she was attempting to answer his questions about the firearm used by Man Horan Monis in the December 2014 incident. “If he [Monis] was able to buy a shotgun, which he did, he could theoretically buy a lever-action rapid-fire shotgun,” he mused to Senator McKenzie, who rightfully pointed out that licensed firearm owners must go through the relevant licensing and registration process in order to buy a gun. “He did that,” Mr Jones interrupted.
While the SSAA applauds Senator McKenzie for standing up for law-abiding firearm owners to an obviously anti-gun panel, early investigations following the Sydney Siege and the subsequent ongoing inquest has found that Monis never held a firearms licence, despite earlier erroneous reports. He once held a security licence but never a firearms licence that would have allowed him to purchase the illegally modified, unregistered shotgun legally, as Mr Jones insinuated.
The SSAA Legislative Action department has been closely following the inquest into the deaths arising from the Lindt Café siege. We will continue to call out any misleading claims about legitimate firearms ownership and urge the taxpayer-funded ABC to investigate Mr Jones’ misleading statement.