THOSE of us who live in regional New South Wales expect governments to respond to tragedy with honesty, restraint and clear thinking.
We understand grief and we understand the need for accountability. What we do not accept is policy made on the run purely to hide the failings of Government.
That concern has come sharply into focus following the horrific antisemitic terrorist attack at Bondi.
We were all horrified by the targeted violence inflicted on innocent members of the Jewish community at Bondi.
It was an act of hatred that must be condemned without qualification, and those affected deserve justice, truth and transparency.
But almost immediately, the NSW Government shifted the conversation away from the reasons that allowed the attack to happen toward sweeping changes to gun laws.
Even though antisemitism has worsened in our state, particularly since October, 2023.
When governments respond to terrorism by targeting people who had nothing to do with the crime, it undermines both public trust and public safety.
Member for Northern Tablelands Brendan Moylan says government response to the Bondi attack should be better.
The recent New South Wales gun law changes place new burdens on licensed, law-abiding firearm owners, farmers, professional shooters, sporting shooters, gun clubs and regional businesses who already operate under some of the strictest gun laws in the world.
These are not abstract policies in regional New South Wales.
Firearms are tools of trade. They are essential for biosecurity and animal welfare.
Yet once again, decisions made in Sydney appear disconnected from the realities of life beyond the metropolitan boundary.
Legislating under the pressure of headlines might make the Premier look decisive, but it will not produce better outcomes for the innocent victims and their families.
Good policy requires uncomfortable honesty.
It requires acknowledging that terrorism motivated by antisemitic hatred is not prevented by tightening regulations on people who already comply with the law.
Good policy requires a focus on intelligence failures, enforcement gaps and radicalisation, not symbolic measures that shift blame without addressing cause.
Regional New South Wales understands the cost of getting policy wrong. We live with the consequences when essential services are stripped back, when infrastructure lags, and when “one size fits all” rules ignore geography and common sense.
The response to the Bondi attack should be better.
We owe it to the victims to pursue truth, not convenience. Politicians owe it to our communities to legislate with evidence, as opposed to chasing headlines and the NSW Government must stop treating regional communities as collateral damage in poll driven political narratives.
The Victims and their families deserve so much more than rushed amendments to firearm laws and regional New South Wales deserves better.
Words: Brendan Moylan, Member for Northern Tablelands
