Christina Kukula

The Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says there are currently more than four million firearms in the country.

That's even more than in the late 1990s when a mass shooting attack in Tasmania killed 35 people and prompted a major reform of gun ownership laws.

Albanese says tougher action is needed today.

Funding for the buyback program needs to be legislated.

Australia's government says the program will target surplus newly banned and illegal firearms, and surrendered weapons will be destroyed.

It also wants to limit how many guns a person can own, and to make Australian citizenship a condition of holding a gun license.

For NPR News, I'm Christina Kukula in Melbourne.

It's been described as the biggest overhaul of Australian gun laws since reforms that followed a mass shooting in Tasmania in the 1990s.

At a meeting led by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese one day after the Bondi Beach attack, state and territory leaders agreed to take immediate action.

Limiting the number of firearms a person can own is among the options being considered.

Another is to make Australian citizenship a condition for holding a gun licence.

The national government says it will prioritize potential customs restrictions on firearms and other weapons-type imports.

For NPR News, I'm Christina Kukola in Melbourne.