New laws to restrict the sale of knives and replica gel blasters to juveniles to enhance community safety

• Knives, certain other bladed items and  replica firearms (including gel blasters) will be restricted from sale to juveniles under new laws to be introduced to Parliament.
• Police have seized 350 weapons in first six months since Jack’s Law passed, with 904 persons charged on almost 1,600 offences during wanding operations.
• More than 31,800 people have been scanned on public transport and in night club precincts.

The Palaszczuk Government will introduce new laws to Parliament to restrict the sale of knives, certain other bladed items and replica firearms (including gel blasters) to juveniles, in a commitment to protect the community and further combat knife crime and youth offending.

The proposed laws would see the sale of knives, certain other bladed items like machetes, axes, swords, and replica firearms (including gel blasters) to juveniles, become an offence.

The new laws aim to reduce the accessibility of these items to young people, disrupt and deter violent offences while enhancing community safety.

Under the proposed legislation, any person attempting to use false identification to purchase one of these items could also be charged with an offence.

Retailers will be required to display signage regarding the prohibition of sales to juveniles and have obligations requiring secure storage for certain other bladed items like machetes, axes, swords, sickles, daggers, double-edged blades and spears.

To further curb the notoriety of weapon possession among young people, it will be prohibited for these items to be advertised in a violent manner or in a way that suggests they are ‘suitable for combat’.

The proposed laws follow research conducted by Queensland Police Service (QPS), including an assessment of crime statistics, and consideration of comparable legislative responses in Queensland including the restriction on the sale of spray paint to juveniles.

The proposed laws come as the QPS seize 350 weapons in the first six months of wanding operations under Jack’s Law.

More than 2,900 handheld scanner operations have been conducted since 30 March 2023, when Jack’s Law legislation was extended and expanded to all Safe Night Precincts, on public transport and at transport hubs.

During wanding operations more than 31,800 people have been scanned, resulting in 904 people being charged with almost 1,600 offences, mostly related to weapon and drug matters.

Jack’s Law is the result of the dedicated advocacy of the Jack Beasley Foundation and Brett and Belinda Beasley in reforming knife crime legislation, in honour of their 17-year-old son Jack, who was tragically fatally stabbed on the Gold Coast in 2019.

In a bid to curb knife crime, the Australian-first legislation allows police to use a handheld metal detecting wand in authorised locations to detect weapons, deter offending and protect the community.

Quotes attributable to Police Minister Mark Ryan:

“The Palaszczuk Government is committed to continually looking at new ways to improve community safety.

“These laws will assist in keeping dangerous items out of the hands of young criminals, before violent offences can occur.

“This will go hand in hand with the expansion of Jack’s Law, which is saving lives and reducing violence across Queensland every single day.

“The advocacy from Brett and Belinda has been instrumental in putting Queensland on the map as nation-leading in the fight against knife crime.

“I extend our continued gratitude to them for everything the Jack Beasley Foundation does to educate the community on the dangers of carrying weapons.

“With 1,600 offences detected as part of wanding operations so far, there’s no doubt Jack’s Law is playing a significant part in keeping Queenslanders safe.”

Quotes attributable to Acting Assistant Commissioner Paul Hart, Acting Commander Youth Crime Taskforce:

“These laws will be a step forward in enhancing how police can stop knife crime in its tracks and keep communities safe.

“It will allow officers to take action against those unlawfully selling weapons to young people, who may intend to use them to commit violent offences.”

“Already, thanks to Jack’s Law, police have removed 350 weapons off our streets in just six months – many that could have been involved in acts of senseless violence.

“With every wanding operation we see an opportunity to educate on the impacts of knife crime and intervene in the lives of those who are making the poor decision to carry a weapon.

“The results from Jack’s Law speak for themselves, and with further legislation restricting young people’s access to weapons – we’re confident we can continue to enhance community safety.”

Quotes attributable to Brett Beasley, Jack Beasley Foundation:

“Belinda and I will always grieve for Jack, but it is very heartening to see that his legacy lives on.

“Six months after Jack’s Law came into effect it’s really encouraging to see that Police are using Jack’s legacy to undertake wanding operations right across the state.

“It’s clearly making a real difference in helping to keep communities safe.

“It’s also very gratifying to see the government take another significant step in relation to restricting the availability of weapons, especially to young people.

“Our work with Jack’s foundation will continue with its focus on educating young people about the dangers of carrying knives and other weapons.

“It’s great that the government is further supporting our work by making it harder for dangerous weapons to fall into the wrong hands.”

Quotes attributable to Dan Tyne, Director Ausgel International, and spokesperson for the Queensland Gel Blaster sector:

“The Gel Blaster industry as a whole is generally supportive of this move to impose a restriction on the sale of gel blasters to minors under the age of 18.

We believe it will promote community safety while continuing to allow gel blaster enthusiasts to continue to enjoy the gel blaster sport in a safe manner.”

Quotes attributable to Angus Nardi, Chief Executive, Shopping Centre Council of Australia:

“We welcome this proposal from the Government as an important and timely community safety initiative.

“We look forward to working with the Government on the detail to ensure a clear and effective policy framework, especially plans to educate and inform retailers and customers on any new laws as they come into effect.”

Quotes attributable to Australian Retailers Association CEO Paul Zahra:

“The retail community has been extremely responsive to measures to keep the community safe. 

“We are willing to work with the Queensland Government to get the laws consistent with those of other states to make it easier for retailers to implement and ultimately protect retail staff and businesses.

“Awareness and training will be a key part of the success of this change and we will work closely with our retail community to make sure there is strong awareness of the new practices.”

Quotes attributable to David Stout, National Retail Association:

“The National Retail Association understands that this is a necessary step for the safety of our customers

“Landlords, retailers and team members, face an array of challenges with increasing cases of aggression and assaults.

“We appreciate the opportunity to work with the Queensland Government on getting the Policy settings right.  

“We also understand that they’ll be a reasonable transition period to ensure the correct systems can be developed.”

Fast facts: 

Proposed new laws

• Under proposed new laws the Palaszczuk Government will introduce to parliament:
• It will become an offence to sell knives, certain other bladed items and replica firearms (including gel blasters) to juveniles.
• It will become an offence to use false identification to purchase these weapons.
• It will become an offence to advertise these items as ‘suitable for combat’.
• Retailers will be required to securely store certain other bladed items like machetes, axes, swords, sickles, daggers, double-edged blades and spears prior to sale.
• Retailers will be required to display signage regarding age restriction for sales.

Jack’s Law

• An Australian-first wanding trial began on the Gold Coast in May 2021
• Jack’s Law was expanded by Queensland Parliament on 30 March 30 2023 authorising the use of hand held scanner provisions in Safe Night Precincts, public transport and public transport hubs across the state.
• Statistics regarding state-wide wanding between 6 April 2023 and 31 October 2023:
• 350 weapons located and seized
• 904 persons charged
• 1593 charges
• 765 drug related offences
• 309 weapons related offences
• 519 other offences
• 31,833 persons scanned
• 21,629 adults
• 9,877 young people

Vision Package:  https://r2.mypolice.qld.gov.au/uploads/2023/11/02/025119_wanding-op.mp4

Media Contacts 

Minister Ryan’s Office: Ph: (07) 3035 8300

Police Media: Ph: (07) 3015 2444