The debate over gun laws fired up again today.

State and Territory Police Ministers have agreed to a firearms amnesty next year.

This will allow owners of the banned Adler shotgun to hand them in without penalty.

Roisin O’Sullivan reports

TRANSCRIPT

The Ministers, meeting in Melbourne, could not agree on a classification for the weapon, so the ban will remain.

The Prime Minister and his predecessor have been taking potshots at each other over the issue.

First, Mr Abbott said the federal government would be “crackers” to relax the ban on importing the controversial shotgun.

Then Mr Turnbull fired back, basically accusing Abbott of lying…

Because the former Abbott government had pursued the same thing.

Malcolm Turnbull, Prime Minister: “I am satisfied that the Minister for Justice acted in the full knowledge of the Prime Minister’s office at that time.”

Mr Abbott emphatically denied this.

Tony Abbott, former Prime Minister: “This is absolutely and utterly false.”

Mr Turnbull was in Sydney this morning… about the same time as the Police Ministers were meeting.

Not surprisingly, he declined to continue the public battle any further.

Roisin O’Sullivan, QUT News.