The federal government would be "crackers" to water down a ban on importing rapid-fire shotguns into Australia because of the growing terror threat, Tony Abbott says, in comments that place him at odds with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Nationals MPs.
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Mr Turnbull was forced on to the backfoot on Tuesday over the import of the rapid-fire, seven-shot Adler 110 shotgun, with Nationals MPs calling for the gun to be reclassified to Category B, allowing it to be imported under restricted circumstances, such as for the eradication of feral pigs and Labor claiming the government was prepared to water down a ban in exchange for the vote of Senator David Leyonhjelm on two key pieces of industrial legislation.
But as the Prime Minister attempted to turn the tables on Labor and released a letter to Opposition Leader Bill Shorten demanding the ALP back mandatory five-year minimum sentences for trafficking and stronger penalties, Mr Abbott said when he was prime minister there was no way "on God's Earth, with a heightened terror threat, we were going to allow perhaps tens of thousands of rapid-fire weapons into the country".
That comment contradicted Senator David Leyonhjelm's claim, backed up by email correspondence, that he had a struck a deal to allow the Adler in to the country in 2015.
Mr Abbott's direct intervention on guns, which comes as he also helps lead a public push for greater democratisation of the NSW Liberal Party, goes much further than Mr Turnbull's statements that the Adler ban would remain in place but could be changed with the agreement of state and territory police ministers, who will meet on Friday.
It was also welcomed by some Coalition MPs, who believe Mr Turnbull and the government have fluffed their lines in response to Labor's suggestion gun laws could be watered down.
"With a heightened terror threat, there is just no way that any serious Coalition government, any government in the tradition of John Howard should be allowing rapid fire weapons on a very large scale into our country," Mr Abbott said.
"The federal government should do whatever it needs to do to ensure that rapid-fire guns are not readily available in this country". In his view, only law enforcement agencies, the military and perhaps pest exterminators needed access to rapid-fire shotguns and that the idea "shooters generally should have access to rapid-fire weapons is just crackers."
The federal government controls the import of weapons, but state governments control the classification of them. Friday's meeting of police ministers is considered unlikely to strike a deal under which all states agree to reclassify the Adler and allow it in to the country.
Mr Turnbull told Parliament his government was not prepared to "see those guns imported into Australia under the current classification which they have, under John Howard's gun laws . . . the reality is that the gun laws must be strengthened as they apply to lever-action shotguns".
"To this date, despite our best efforts, the states and territories haven't agreed on the way in which the guns should be reclassified. Until they do, they will not be imported, full stop."
Justice Minister Michael Keenan confirmed that in the absence of state police ministers agreeing, the ban on the Adler would continue.
One Liberal MP told Fairfax Media that Mr Abbott had provided a "competing prime ministerial voice" on the guns issue that voters could understand.
Another, however, said it was clear the former prime minister was "shit-stirring" - but agreed the government had been unnecessarily forced on to the back foot by Labor.
In Question Time, Opposition leader Bill Shorten seized on Mr Abbott's comments and demanded to know what position the government would take to Friday's meeting and "what decision does the PM want the states to arrive at? Does the PM want these weapons to come into Australia?"
But Mr Turnbull fired back that "Opposition is not only refusing to support the introduction of mandatory sentences for gun smuggling, imagine that, they say this is an issue of principle. What is the principle involved?"
In response, Mr Shorten released a letter that attacked the Prime Minister for being willing to consider "horse-trading" on guns in exchange for Senator Leyonhjelm's support for those industrial relations bills.
"There is no convincing evidence to prove that mandatory minimum sentencing acts as an effective deterrent, in this or any other area of criminal justice," Mr Shorten said.
NSW's Deputy Premier Troy Grant, who on Tuesday made a surprise declaration of support for re-classifying the gun and lifting a ban on its importation, said it was important the government "get off the backs of hard-working decent farmers and sport and recreational shooters".
But Premier Mike Baird shut that idea down, declaring "There can be no dilution of the Howard gun laws".
Liberals MP Ian Goodenough joined Mr Grant as well as Nationals Bridget McKenzie and Mark Coulton in suggesting the Adler should be re-classified, and available under restricted circumstances.
with James Robertson
