Shooters Party
Encyclopedia
The Shooters and Fishers Party, formerly known as the Shooters Party, is an Australia
n state political party. It is registered for state elections in New South Wales
, Victoria
and South Australia
. The party changed its name to the Shooters and Fishers Party in 2010.
proposed laws preventing citizens from owning firearms for personal protection
as part of a raft of firearms laws after a number of high profile mass shooting
s. It was founded by journalist and broadcaster John Tingle
, who was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Council
in March 1995 as the party's first representative. Tingle resigned in May 2006, and was succeeded by businessman Robert Brown
.
s. It asserts that every law-abiding citizen should have the right to own and use a firearm for legitimate purposes. It strongly supports recreational & conservation hunting
, and laws giving shooters access to public land for hunting. It also has policies relating to personal freedom, and reduction of governmental interference in citizens' lives; as well as the need for five-year reviews of all legislation. The party's motto is "Reclaim Freedom". It actively supports recreational fishers, four-wheel drive
rs and other outdoor users, as well as rural activities of farming, mining & forestry. The Party opposes what it calls "extreme Green policies" and the "left leaning social reconstructive agenda" of the Greens
.
The Party counts among its achievements, a number of successful Bills, including those giving rights of self defence to any citizen, anywhere, with immunity from civil or criminal liability; providing extra penalties for attacks on vulnerable people; giving families of homicide
victims the right to be heard in court; establishment of the Game Council NSW, and legislation allowing specifically licensed hunters to hunt on public land; government funding of shooting clubs, and establishment of regional shooting complexes; recognition of membership of a hunting club as "genuine reason" for obtaining a firearms licence; extension of minor permits from ages 18 to 12, etc. The Shooters Party also assists firearms organizations.
for failing to contest a federal election for four years. It was re-registered after the 2004 federal election but was deregistered again on 27 December 2006, along with a number of minor parties which did not have a representative sitting in Federal Parliament. Re-registration, after this event, was achieved in August 2007. The Australian Shooters Party contested the 2007 federal elections and received 0.28% of the national vote (though they did not contest all states & even then only with Senate tickets) and 1.1% of the vote in NSW. The Party was instrumental in flowing preferences away from the Greens in NSW (who failed to be reelected), Queensland & Victoria
The South Australian 2006 state election saw the Shooters Party run two candidates for the Legislative Council, Robert Low and Michael T Hudson, preferencing
the Family First Party
as well as the One Nation Party
. The Shooters Party received 5,991 votes out of 1,055,347 voters enrolled, which is 0.6% of the vote, with only a 0.08 quota. Neither candidate was elected.
In the 2007 New South Wales state election, the Shooters Party received 2.8% of the primary vote for the Legislative Council (↑0.8%) to elect lead candidate Roy Smith
to the Upper House. As a result, the party now holds 2 seats in the NSW Upper House.
At the 2011 New South Wales state election
, the Liberal/National Coalition took government but with three seats short of a majority in the upper house. The Shooters hold two seats along with the Christian Democratic Party
, with the balance of power
shifting from the Greens to the two parties. The Shooters have reportedly created a list of demands in exchange for legislative support for the government, however the government has "ruled out" any deals with the Shooters.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n state political party. It is registered for state elections in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
and South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. The party changed its name to the Shooters and Fishers Party in 2010.
Origin
The Shooters Party came into existence on May 2, 1992 when the New South Wales GovernmentGovernment of New South Wales
The form of the Government of New South Wales is prescribed in its Constitution, which dates from 1856, although it has been amended many times since then...
proposed laws preventing citizens from owning firearms for personal protection
Self-defense
Self-defense, self-defence or private defense is a countermeasure that involves defending oneself, one's property or the well-being of another from physical harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force in times of danger is available in many...
as part of a raft of firearms laws after a number of high profile mass shooting
Spree killer
A spree killer is someone who embarks on a murderous assault on two or more victims in a short time in multiple locations. The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics defines a spree killing as "killings at two or more locations with almost no time break between murders."-Definition:According to the...
s. It was founded by journalist and broadcaster John Tingle
John Tingle
John Saxon Tingle is a former Australian politician. Born in Edgecliff, New South Wales, he was a broadcaster and news editor at Deniliquin from 1949 to 1951 before becoming a journalist for the ABC from 1951 to 1968. During that time he was Supervisor of ABCTV News and Chief of Staff of the ABC...
, who was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Council
New South Wales Legislative Council
The New South Wales Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of New South Wales in Australia. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney. The Assembly is referred to as the lower house and the Council as...
in March 1995 as the party's first representative. Tingle resigned in May 2006, and was succeeded by businessman Robert Brown
Robert Leslie Brown
Robert Leslie Brown is an Australian politician. He has been a Shooters and Fishers Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Council since May 2006, when he filled a casual vacancy sparked by the retirement of long-time party leader John Tingle...
.
Policies
The party's policies are not entirely focused around firearmFirearm
A firearm is a weapon that launches one, or many, projectile at high velocity through confined burning of a propellant. This subsonic burning process is technically known as deflagration, as opposed to supersonic combustion known as a detonation. In older firearms, the propellant was typically...
s. It asserts that every law-abiding citizen should have the right to own and use a firearm for legitimate purposes. It strongly supports recreational & conservation hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
, and laws giving shooters access to public land for hunting. It also has policies relating to personal freedom, and reduction of governmental interference in citizens' lives; as well as the need for five-year reviews of all legislation. The party's motto is "Reclaim Freedom". It actively supports recreational fishers, four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive, 4WD, or 4×4 is a four-wheeled vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all four wheels to receive torque from the engine simultaneously...
rs and other outdoor users, as well as rural activities of farming, mining & forestry. The Party opposes what it calls "extreme Green policies" and the "left leaning social reconstructive agenda" of the Greens
Australian Greens
The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which...
.
The Party counts among its achievements, a number of successful Bills, including those giving rights of self defence to any citizen, anywhere, with immunity from civil or criminal liability; providing extra penalties for attacks on vulnerable people; giving families of homicide
Homicide
Homicide refers to the act of a human killing another human. Murder, for example, is a type of homicide. It can also describe a person who has committed such an act, though this use is rare in modern English...
victims the right to be heard in court; establishment of the Game Council NSW, and legislation allowing specifically licensed hunters to hunt on public land; government funding of shooting clubs, and establishment of regional shooting complexes; recognition of membership of a hunting club as "genuine reason" for obtaining a firearms licence; extension of minor permits from ages 18 to 12, etc. The Shooters Party also assists firearms organizations.
Results
Before the federal election of 2004, the Australian Shooters Party was deregistered by the Australian Electoral CommissionAustralian Electoral Commission
The Australian Electoral Commission, or the AEC, is the federal government agency in charge of organising and supervising federal elections and referendums. State and local government elections are overseen by the Electoral Commission in each state and territory.The Australian Electoral Commission...
for failing to contest a federal election for four years. It was re-registered after the 2004 federal election but was deregistered again on 27 December 2006, along with a number of minor parties which did not have a representative sitting in Federal Parliament. Re-registration, after this event, was achieved in August 2007. The Australian Shooters Party contested the 2007 federal elections and received 0.28% of the national vote (though they did not contest all states & even then only with Senate tickets) and 1.1% of the vote in NSW. The Party was instrumental in flowing preferences away from the Greens in NSW (who failed to be reelected), Queensland & Victoria
The South Australian 2006 state election saw the Shooters Party run two candidates for the Legislative Council, Robert Low and Michael T Hudson, preferencing
Single transferable vote
The single transferable vote is a voting system designed to achieve proportional representation through preferential voting. Under STV, an elector's vote is initially allocated to his or her most preferred candidate, and then, after candidates have been either elected or eliminated, any surplus or...
the Family First Party
Family First Party
The Family First Party is a socially conservative minor political party in Australia. It has two members in the South Australian Legislative Council...
as well as the One Nation Party
One Nation Party
One Nation is a far-right and nationalist political party in Australia. It gained 22% of the vote translating to 11 of 89 seats in Queensland's unicameral legislative assembly at the 1998 state election and made major inroads into the vote of the existing parties...
. The Shooters Party received 5,991 votes out of 1,055,347 voters enrolled, which is 0.6% of the vote, with only a 0.08 quota. Neither candidate was elected.
In the 2007 New South Wales state election, the Shooters Party received 2.8% of the primary vote for the Legislative Council (↑0.8%) to elect lead candidate Roy Smith
Roy Smith (Australian politician)
Roy Anthony Smith was an Australian politician, and a former manager of the New South Wales Sporting Shooters Association of Australia. He was a member of the Shooters Party, and at the 2007 state election was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Council...
to the Upper House. As a result, the party now holds 2 seats in the NSW Upper House.
At the 2011 New South Wales state election
New South Wales state election, 2011
Elections to the 55th Parliament of New South Wales were held on Saturday, 26 March 2011. The 16-year incumbent Australian Labor Party government led by Premier Kristina Keneally was defeated in a landslide by the Liberal-National coalition opposition led by Barry O'Farrell.New South Wales has...
, the Liberal/National Coalition took government but with three seats short of a majority in the upper house. The Shooters hold two seats along with the Christian Democratic Party
Christian Democratic Party (Australia)
The Christian Democratic Party is a right-wing political party in Australia. Its leader is Fred Nile, a Congregational Church minister and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council.-Formation:...
, with the balance of power
Balance of power (parliament)
In parliamentary politics, the term balance of power sometimes describes the pragmatic mechanism exercised by a minor political party or other grouping whose guaranteed support may enable an otherwise minority government to obtain and hold office...
shifting from the Greens to the two parties. The Shooters have reportedly created a list of demands in exchange for legislative support for the government, however the government has "ruled out" any deals with the Shooters.
Members
- John TingleJohn TingleJohn Saxon Tingle is a former Australian politician. Born in Edgecliff, New South Wales, he was a broadcaster and news editor at Deniliquin from 1949 to 1951 before becoming a journalist for the ABC from 1951 to 1968. During that time he was Supervisor of ABCTV News and Chief of Staff of the ABC...
(New South Wales Legislative CouncilNew South Wales Legislative CouncilThe New South Wales Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of New South Wales in Australia. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney. The Assembly is referred to as the lower house and the Council as...
, 1995–2006) - Robert BrownRobert Leslie BrownRobert Leslie Brown is an Australian politician. He has been a Shooters and Fishers Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Council since May 2006, when he filled a casual vacancy sparked by the retirement of long-time party leader John Tingle...
(New South Wales Legislative CouncilNew South Wales Legislative CouncilThe New South Wales Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of New South Wales in Australia. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney. The Assembly is referred to as the lower house and the Council as...
, 2006–present) - Roy SmithRoy Smith (Australian politician)Roy Anthony Smith was an Australian politician, and a former manager of the New South Wales Sporting Shooters Association of Australia. He was a member of the Shooters Party, and at the 2007 state election was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Council...
(New South Wales Legislative CouncilNew South Wales Legislative CouncilThe New South Wales Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of New South Wales in Australia. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney. The Assembly is referred to as the lower house and the Council as...
, 2007–2010) - Robert BorsakRobert BorsakRobert Borsak is an Australian voluntary conservation hunter, recreational hunter and shooter and is now an elected MP of the Shooters and Fishers Party...
(New South Wales Legislative CouncilNew South Wales Legislative CouncilThe New South Wales Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of New South Wales in Australia. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney. The Assembly is referred to as the lower house and the Council as...
, 2010–present)
Further reading
- Swain, Marie.(1996) Gun control : historical perspective and contemporary overview Sydney, NSW Parliamentary Library Research Service, 1996. ISBN 0731059514. Series: Briefing paper (New South Wales. Parliamentary Library Research Service) ; no. 11/96