THE Australian Prime Minister said yesterday he would not negotiate on his plan to ban automatic and semi automatic firearms following the nation's worst mass shooting by a lone gunman that killed 35 people.
Today Mr John Howard presides at a special gun control conference with state police ministers.
"I should make it clear the commonwealth (national) government's proposal was seriously put together, it is not an ambit claim", Mr Howard told parliament, gaining bipartisan support for his plan from the Labour opposition.
The national government, which has no control over gun laws, wants the states to ban private ownership of automatic and semi automatic firearms, create a national gun register and tighten controls on gun ownership.
"I hope that the police ministers respond to the very strong concern throughout the Australian community, which has been expressed with unprecedented vigour", Mr Howard said.
Today's meeting is seen as a final attempt to bring in strict, uniform controls, smother the political influence of the rural based gun lobby and discourage the expansion of the "gun culture" which has crept into Australia over the past decade.
In New South Wales, the most populous state, gun murders are one tenth of the US rate but seven times greater than that of England and Wales.
Since 1984, 87 people have died in mass shootings in Australia, many in peaceful locations such as Port Arthur.
Under Mr Howard's proposals, there will be a six month amnesty for the surrender of banned weapons, such as those used in the Port Arthur killings, and prison terms of up to seven years for those who fail to comply.
Mr Howard will also propose that Canberra compensate those who surrender outlawed guns. This could cost 300 million Australian dollars (£153 million) and would be financed through a levy.
Public and press opinion have overwhelmingly endorsed the proposals. Opinion polls this week showed support running at more than 90 per cent across political, state, city and country boundaries.
Power over guns remains with Australia's six parochially minded state governments. Those in Western Australia and the Northern Territory say they will oppose the ban on semi automatic weapons because licensed shooters need such guns to control wild buffalo, pigs, donkeys and crocodiles.
Most state leaders have quivered at threats by the wealthy gun lobby, backed by money and expertise from the powerful American National Rifle Association.
Mr Duncan Chappell, a prominent Sydney criminologist, said. "If we can't get over the top at this point, I would be pessimistic about us ever being able to do it.
Mr Chappell headed an inquiry by the National Committee on Violence which the Australian government set up after two mass shootings in Melbourne in 1987 left 15 people dead.
It concluded prophetically that, unless there were tighter controls on the availability and use of guns, then more such horrors would follow.