Half – million criminals createdwith the stroke of a pen in QLD
Don’t give dad a pocket knife forChristmas or he could end up in jail.
Katter’s Australian Party has warnedanyone who wants to buy their Dad a new pocket knife this Christmasto think twice, otherwise they could be sending him to jail for up totwo years after laws passed last month banned many folding pocketknives.
State leader Aidan McLindon condemnedthe ALP and LNP for joining forces on this legislation that could seeas many as half a million Queenslanders in possession of illegalweapons.
“The day these laws come in to force,around 500,000 Queenslanders will instantly become criminals and haveanother thing to be worried about being arrested for,” Mr McLindonsaid.
“There are three main traps that havebeen set.
1. The first involves a new definitionof a flick knife. It now includes any standard folding knife thatopens if you give it a good hard shake. That covers a big portion ofwell-made or well-worn standard folding pocket knives. Owners ofthese knives can attempt to get around the law by tightening thehinge screws up so as the knife becomes difficult to open, butultimately they run the risk of being charged with possession of aflick knife. How is the average bloke supposed to learn about this?
2. The second trap is a ban on knivescapable of being opened with one hand that a Police Officerdetermines has been designed as a weapon. If the officer, at his orher sole discretion decides the knife was once designed as a weaponyou are in breach of the weapons Act and will be charged.
3. The third trap relates to areasonable excuse for carrying a knife in a public place and givespolice the power to charge you if they don’t like your explanationof why you’re carrying your pocket knife.
Under the new legislation, people canapply for a special licence from the Queensland Police to keep theirold pocket knife so long as they can demonstrate an occupationalrequirement, however staff in Weapons Licensing Branch are alreadymonths behind and industry groups fear further delays.
“This is unbelievable – tradies,farmers and fisherman are not going to apply for another licence andnor should they. These new laws are so confusing that they verge onthe ridiculous and it’s no surprise people are sick of restrictionslike this”, Mr McLindon said.
“It just shows just how out ofcontrol and out of touch the ALP and LNP are from the ordinary bloke.
“Katter’s Australian Party iscommitted to repealing the offending parts of this legislation whenwe are in Government and we will re-instate people’s right to goabout their business without worrying about being arrested as theywalk down the street. “
Industry groups are now calling for thelaws to be repealed or for the government to fund a buyback. With anestimated 1,000,000 affected knives across Queensland, it couldexceed $75,000,000 and would require a massive mobilisation of policeresources as well as a public education campaign.
New QLD Weapons Act Ammendment
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