Ms McKee is being disingenuous with her argument. The options in the discussion document are for a flat fee or a fee based on the size of the item plus a base fee of $45 etc. In a sense though, she's right the charges are ridiculous. It's a Hobson's choice between an OTT charge or a smaller one that is still too high for what it is. Even using $45 for the base proposed alternative fee is too high, and would be $540 an hour for the 5 minutes @HG Man estimates. Submit everyone. The proposal is not giving realistic options
Identify your target beyond all doubt because you never miss (right?) and I'll be missed.
I'm going to submit, but I'm still gathering thoughts on it. I've got it marked in my calender 2 days prior to when it closes, so I have the most time to get all relevant points that I can.
I'll also be asking to speak, in person, to my submission. I've done it before and as a mark of taking part in our democracy, I think its massively underestimated.
I've just put in an OIA as to the amount of GST collected from ammunition and firearms in the past 5 years, so we'll see how that gets on.
The document that we are being asked for feedback on promulgates, in essence, solutions looking for a problem.
My own archives, which are not particularly extensive has, for example, five iterations since Nov 2018 till Nov 2022 of a document "Secure storage guidance for firearms", grown from 18 pages to 25 with a file size increasing from 715 KB to 6.4 MB
Then, along comes the 'Shooting Range Manual'. Another solution looking for a problem.
There are minions within NZ Police creating this stuff, and now they want us to pay for it under the guise of "user pays". Only problem is, we have not asked for any of it! If it's purpose is to create "public safety" then it must be argued that "the public pays" through the general tax take, not an isolated segment of the public.
The hierarchy of NZ Police, no doubt at the behest of the pollies have, and continue to, created an unwieldy empire the aim of which, as has been pointed out, is to discourage anybody from owning firearms.
Can my assertion be justified? Just take a look at Appendix 4: -
Public safety (contribute to safety outcomes)
Fees are not intended to be direct contributors to public safety in themselves but they may reduce the demand for and use of firearms. emphasis added
Control use of firearms and ammunition
Full cost recovery does not directly control the use of firearms. Current licence holders have no incentive to change their behaviour with fire-arms if fees increase. emphasis added
The biggest challenge that our society faces (not just the firearm owning fraternity) is the insidious creep of various forms of control inflicted on societies, world-wide, by alphabet agencies such as U.N., W.E.F., W.H.O., etc., etc.
I had thought, perhaps mistakenly, that NZ is a sovereign nation that, through the will of its citizens, is master of its own destiny.
Maybe I'm deluded, or a conspiracy theorist!
Certainly one could submit that in allowing their agenda to leak into the draft document (discouraging firearm ownership) then police have committed overreach of their obligation to oversee the firearms laws impartially and hence they should be sent back to the drawing board
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