Tony Abbott has pleaded with Labor to back legislation to crack down on illegal firearms , which will be reintroduced to parliament this week . The coalition will again push for a mandatory five-year minimum sentences for traffickers by tabling legislation already rejected by the Senate in February . The prime minister on Sunday called on Labor to support the tough new gun laws , saying it was crucial to cracking down on criminals involved in the illegal firearms trade . Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott ( L ) and Attorney General George Brandis ( R ) at the Australian Federal Police Headquarters . ' I say to Bill Shorten and the Labor Party , if you 're fair dinkum about protecting our community from gun crime you should support these mandatory minimum sentences for people who traffic in illegal firearms , ' he told reporters in Sydney . Labor voted against the measures earlier this year , citing an opposition to mandatory sentences . But Mr Abbott said Labor had supported mandatory minimum sentencing for people smugglers when it was in government , and should back its gun trafficking legislation . 'The Labor Party to its credit has a fair record in this parliament on national security , ' he said . There are an estimated 250,000 illegal firearms in Australia . ' I do n't believe you can properly separate out this crackdown on illegal trafficking in firearms from our overall national security effort . ' But shadow attorney general Mark Dreyfus ruled out support for the measure , saying heavy penalties already existed for firearms trafficking . 'There is no evidence that mandatory minimum sentences work as a deterrent , ' Mr Dreyfus said . Greens ' senator Penny Wright said she was she did not believe tougher gun sentences would make Australia a safer place . The coalition will again push for a mandatory five-year minimum sentences for traffickers by tabling legislation already rejected by the Senate in February . 'Tougher sentencing for trafficking is not the way to address gun crime in Australia , ' she said . 'While more certainly needs to be done to stop illegal imports , many illicit firearms are actually stolen from legitimate sources or taken from the 'grey market ' , including the gun used in the Sydney siege . 'Tackling gun crime requires a multi-faceted approach , not national security scaremongering . ' There are an estimated 250,000 illegal firearms in Australia . Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article .
pat Abbott has pleaded with Labor to back a new gun legislation . The government is calling for a five - year minimum sentence for criminals . It will be introduced into parliament this week . The Prime Minister said it was crucial to crack down on criminals .