The Sale of All Non-Kitchen Knives >20cm to Be Banned in Victoria

mapax on 28/05/2025 - 10:46
Last edited 28/05/2025 - 16:50 by 1 other user

The banning of the sale of >20cm non-kitchen knives and machetes goes into effect at midday today in Victoria and in September it will be illegal to own them with fines of more than $47,000 or 2 years imprisonment. This is expected to include all non-kitchen knives such as camping, bushcraft, hunting and horticultural knives unless the government changes the laws between now and September.

How Victoria's machete sale ban will be enforced

Victorians who took part in the Fiskars deal or any of the other camping knife deals that are >20cm will have to surrender them when the amnesty begins or face excessively harsh penalties.

These laws will do little to stop criminals from using kitchen knives, hatchets, buying interstate, or simply making crude machetes from flat bar. It is only going to have a major impact on law abiding citizens.

As a park ranger/natural resource manager it’s common to see >20cm knives being used for hand weeding and machetes/brush hooks being used to clear brush such as kunzea when working around sound sensitive areas/animals.

Update from ABC-

The government previously said a machete was longer than 20cm, but have since said knives under that length could also come under the ban

General Discussion Knife

Comments

                • try2bhelpful on 28/05/2025 - 12:52
                  -1

                  @Protractor: Link that with sharp implements and the uh oh factor goes up.

                  However, it can get insane at times. We bought a paring knife from a supermarket to allow us to cut things like donuts and croissants. When we bought it the packaging was cable tied so we couldn’t cut it to use the knife. To use a David Mitchel phrase “this ends up with the little old lady who swallowed a fly having hay for her house horse”. Fortunately the IGA had an area with unattended scissors so we could cut the cable ties.

                  The joke is we went into old Parliament House in Canberra and my man had forgotten he was carrying the paring knife in his bag. He mentioned he’d forgotten what was in his bag out loud and the guards were not in the least bit concerned and we went in with the knife still in his bag. Generally the cops don’t care if you are old and white.

              • smartazz104 on 29/05/2025 - 07:37

                @try2bhelpful:

                You are probably right. I do need to stop trying to be the voice of reason.

                You are trying…

          • trapper on 29/05/2025 - 18:07
            +1

            @try2bhelpful:

            if we really want to see violent crimes plummet we would round up all men between 14 and 60 and put them in a compound

            The vast majority of men have never and will never commit a violent crime, or any other crime at all.

            Why not focus on incarcerating those who actually commit these crimes?

            Three strikes and you're out could be effective for repeat offenders. I could agree with you on that.

          • OBEY YOUR MASTERS on 05/06/2025 - 19:52

            @try2bhelpful: This comment is stupidity at its greatest. Without male violence none of us would be here. Our fathers, uncles and brothers would not have laid down their lives to protect us and our genes would have died out ice ages ago.

            Everything exists on a bell curve. You have dysfunctional predators on one end of the curve and the most passive men on the other end. The most agressive are the ones commiting these crimes and the passive ones simply cannot help in a dangerous situation. The men near the mean are what helped us achieved the top place on the food chain. These men are our protectors.

            Please stop the stupidity and get a clue.

            Your father either left you or abused you in some way. Nothing else could explain the male hatred.

      • marcozmitch on 29/05/2025 - 00:10

        Turn them into blunt Art objects?
        Not a complete waste then?
        Recycled into a new form.

  • Gdsamp on 28/05/2025 - 11:37
    +3

    The bar is so low Vic Liberals get it together lol

    • try2bhelpful on 28/05/2025 - 11:45
      +2

      Liberals at all levels can’t get it together. They are more interested in culture wars than good governance.

      • jv on 29/05/2025 - 00:42
        +2

        good governance.

        🤣🤣🤣

      • Nebargains on 29/05/2025 - 05:50

        Imagine saying that in a thread discussing how the government has just implemented a completely pointless law banning particular bladed objects from sale because of a few bad individuals. Doesn't sound like good governance to me.

    • Duckie2hh on 28/05/2025 - 12:27
      +2

      What liberal party?

    • OBEY YOUR MASTERS on 29/05/2025 - 08:08

      The liberal party is the uniparty. They wont save you.

  • Jimothy Wongingtons on 28/05/2025 - 11:40
    +2

    is only going to have a major impact on law abiding citizens.

    I agree

  • Danstar on 28/05/2025 - 12:08
    +3

    This will finally stop all crime in Victoria now! Thank you Jacinta!

    • HangryCakeStore on 29/05/2025 - 08:03

      Better then y’all top notch Aussie parenting styles ay?

      • Danstar on 29/05/2025 - 09:24

        Well at least they're not shooting each other or the people they're attacking

  • pegaxs on 28/05/2025 - 12:14
    +10

    lol @ Victoria banning the "sale" of something you can make in about 10 mins in your own back yard with some steel plate and a grinder.

    You can apply for an exemption though… so double lol @ "knife license".

    I am sure there are criminals sitting around right now shaking their fists in the air and cussing out the Victorian government for drying up their machete supply chain operation.

    Next on the Victorian hit list… "sticks"… The banning of selling anything that can be used to hit someone with… Broom handles, gone. Saplings at Bunnings, gone. Tomato stakes, gone…

    Typical knee-jerk reactionary government leading people to think they are doing something about an issue, but reality are only punishing law abiding citizens.

    InB4: manufactures start making 19cm "machetes".

    • pharkurnell on 28/05/2025 - 12:26
      +2

      @ "knife license".

      is it attached to your boat/car license? If you get done DUI in car/boat do you lose your knife license?

      • jv on 29/05/2025 - 00:46
        -2

        is it attached to your boat/car license?

        It will be similar to Victoria's fishing license.

        You don't need a knife licence if you're:
        • under 18 years or over 70 years
        • a person identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander

    • Jimothy Wongingtons on 28/05/2025 - 14:09
      +2

      InB4: manufactures start making 19cm "machetes".

      Big Knife and their subsidiary, Big Machete be like WRITE THAT DOWN, WRITE THAT DOWN!!!!

    • smartazz104 on 29/05/2025 - 07:39
      +2

      lol @ Victoria banning the "sale" of something you can make in about 10 mins in your own back yard with some steel plate and a grinder.

      Most of the kids wielding these weapons couldn't pour water out of a shoe if the instructions were on the heel.

      • pharkurnell on 29/05/2025 - 11:17

        GOLD!!! hahahahahhahahaa

    • vasya on 29/05/2025 - 19:34

      no 19cm is not good enough - 19.99 cm "machetes" !!! Every millimeter counts!

  • dust on 28/05/2025 - 12:27
    +4

    Meanwhile, Americans after another school shooting….maybe we should arm the teachers with guns?

    • pegaxs on 28/05/2025 - 22:11
      +10

      “You know what stops a bad guy with a machete? A good guy with a machete… what we need in our society is more machetes…”

      • xslasherzz on 29/05/2025 - 08:16

        Actually, who stopped those machete guys? They stopped on their own, out of the goodness of their heart, right? /s

      • vasya on 29/05/2025 - 19:37

        I would say a good guy with a gun is better in stopping bad guys with any kind of weapon.

      • Muppet Detector on 30/05/2025 - 14:20

        Arm them with tasers…

  • greencomet on 28/05/2025 - 12:29

    The Vic government just had to find a way to fine law abiding people, that way they'll make money instead of spending it to fix the crime issue.

    • jv on 29/05/2025 - 00:47
      -1

      that way they'll make money instead

      Every little bit counts to raise the $200 billion for Jacinta's train set…

  • techno2000 on 28/05/2025 - 12:34
    +2

    Criminals are strutting around in the open while law abiding citizens have to cower in fear.

    • try2bhelpful on 28/05/2025 - 12:39
      +2

      Don’t know about you mate but I’m not really cowering in fear and I’m an over 60 years old, five foot tall female who lives near a housing commission area.

      • Protractor on 28/05/2025 - 12:46
        +1

        He's got to be talking about the "all blacks" > "balaclava army" for sure. Must want them rounded up so they can't harass small regional towns with their faceless marches.

        • try2bhelpful on 28/05/2025 - 12:53

          Actually the NeoNazis do concern me. However, if they ever faced some of the machete wielding kids they would probably crap themselves.

          • Protractor on 28/05/2025 - 14:10
            +1

            @try2bhelpful: Yes that famous salute doesn't really lend itself to poking out in front of a razor sharp threshing machines.
            I watched the news but didn't see any booing the machete wielders,either.

          • xslasherzz on 29/05/2025 - 08:39

            @try2bhelpful: @try2bhelpful Amazing, saluters concern you, but repeating violence crimes don't.

            • try2bhelpful on 29/05/2025 - 09:31
              +1

              @xslasherzz: The saluters are often instigators of the mentality that fosters violent crimes. They do have some pretty bad form on this. What I don’t do is over react to what is actually a fairly rare issue based on the number of people living in Australia. I live near a housing commission block that has a number of Sudanese refugees and I have never encountered any violence from them. What I mainly see are normal people getting on with their lives. Forgive me if I don’t subscribe to the rightwing hellscape universe idea because a few people act up. Also forgive me if I prefer my taxpayer money going towards long term solutions rather than $150,000 per year, per person to incarcerate someone. Also I don’t hold all a family responsible for what one member does anymore than I do for an Australian citizen. I will fly the flag for sanity rather than Xenophobia and fear mongering.

    • AustriaBargain on 28/05/2025 - 14:20
      +3

      The ban gives them more crimes to charge them with, so only the very stupid will be machete fighting in malls.

      • try2bhelpful on 28/05/2025 - 15:06
        +3

        And that is very much the point. Stop and search then arrest them before it turns into a free for all. I don’t think someone in their front garden dead heading roses is going to get an armed response.

        • saltysalt on 28/05/2025 - 21:51
          +3

          @try2bhelpful you are talking way too much sense to be commenting on the internet.

        • xslasherzz on 29/05/2025 - 08:23

          Arrest them, and then?

          • try2bhelpful on 29/05/2025 - 09:34
            +1

            @xslasherzz: For a start take the weapons off them and give them time to cool off. Long term create diversion programs to get them out of the current rut of violent conflict. We have $150,000 per year, per person to create the alternative to incarceration. We need to spend some money finding out what works.

            • Danstar on 29/05/2025 - 10:01
              +3

              @try2bhelpful: That's your big solution? You think the weapons aren't being taken off them before ? You think they only have 1 weapon and if they lose it they just go "oh well, my criminal life is over now" ?

      • OzBarAnon on 29/05/2025 - 12:16
        +1

        As if aggravated assault or assault with a deadly weapon weren't enough. You can pile on all the charges you want, but if a judge dismisses them and sets a bail of $50, nothing is going to change.

        • Protractor on 29/05/2025 - 12:19

          Got a link to that "aggravated assault or assault with a deadly weapon" $50 bail scenario, please?

          • OzBarAnon on 31/05/2025 - 00:05

            @Protractor: I hope you understand $50 as a value was used as hyperbole. As for finding digging up stories involving violence with bladed weapons and quick release on bail, I guess I can update this comment with some as I come across them. Don't expect me to make it a priority in my life though.

            For now, here's one I saw just today involving a boy getting held at machete-point with attackers (those that were arrested) already released. Bail value not stated in the story, but the point is they're already back in general society.

  • plmko on 28/05/2025 - 15:22
    -2

    I think people here need to remember that the Machete crimes are done by dumb younger perpetrators.

    They're not going to make their DIY knives in the backyard nor import them.

    Pretty dumb comments around here.

    • try2bhelpful on 28/05/2025 - 15:39
      -1

      I suspect some of the people posting here lean towards the right in politics and think Murdoch is a lefty pinko.

    • trapper on 28/05/2025 - 18:33
      +3

      Why ban them for old people then?

    • mskeggs on 28/05/2025 - 21:12
      +6

      You reckon the machete’s existence is leading these kids into a life of crime?

  • mrdean on 28/05/2025 - 15:49
    +4

    The more regulations like this that get passed, the more it will wake people up to the fact that the government isn't on their side.

    • try2bhelpful on 28/05/2025 - 16:19
      +1

      I suspect the vast majority of people really don’t care if this gets passed or not. This is way down on the benchmark on if the government is on your side.

      • mrdean on 28/05/2025 - 16:40

        The majority don't care whatever laws get passed. But slowly, they will start to realise something is wrong, as more restrictions come into play. Once people get used to this law, there may be another attack using something shorter, & more restrictions will be deemed necessary. Until we're all good obedient citizens.

        • Protractor on 28/05/2025 - 20:08
          +1

          By then there won't be any tin foil left to cook the spuds on the campfire.

        • Muppet Detector on 30/05/2025 - 14:29

          lol, you do realise that they actually had to create legislation to tell people to feed their kids, yeah?

          Once people get used to this law, there may be another attack using something shorter, & more restrictions will be deemed necessary. Until we're all good obedient citizens.

          If we were all good obedient citizens there would be no need for restrictions but when "feed your child" or "take sick kid to doctor" "don't do rude things with children" are actually laws, clearly we need to factor in the lowest common denominator.

          slowly, they will start to realise something is wrong

          Something IS wrong. Something is very wrong.

      • trapper on 28/05/2025 - 18:54
        +3

        People don't care until they get arrested one day and are suddenly facing years in jail - for something totally innocent that they never would have imagined was illegal.

        • try2bhelpful on 28/05/2025 - 19:50
          +5

          Really? You think this is actually what is going to happen here? This will just become an extension of search and seizure laws. The cops will keep tabs on known trouble makers and they will be pinged for weapons offences before they can start trouble. The paranoia of some people is amazing. Hopefully these laws will also be used to take weapons off the batshit crazy guys as well. If so we might’ve been spared the attack in the shopping mall.

          • pinsanity on 28/05/2025 - 20:17

            @try2bhelpful: Creeping normality.

          • trapper on 28/05/2025 - 22:06

            @try2bhelpful: Weapons are already illegal.

            • try2bhelpful on 29/05/2025 - 01:26

              @trapper: It depends on what you define as a weapon. This increases the definition.

          • munecito on 29/05/2025 - 10:45

            @try2bhelpful: An extension to a law, so basically they get "pinged" taken to court and given another bail another community order and continue with their lives.

            You said yourself somewhere in the thread that it is a very small minority doing the crime, if it is so small then throw them in prison. It seems like a good investment to me.

          • SlickMick on 29/05/2025 - 11:54

            @try2bhelpful: No one would have an issue if they were increasing search and seizure laws. If that's what they're trying to achieve, they've chosen a terribly incompetent way to go about it.

        • JIMB0 on 28/05/2025 - 23:22

          They can use their discretion. When I was younger I got pulled up by a cop and he saw a homemade spud cannon in the back of the car. Technically a firearm. He didn't arrest me, just got told to cut it up when I got home.

  • Ocker on 28/05/2025 - 17:13
    +7

    Just ship the thugs back to where they came from

    • mrdean on 28/05/2025 - 17:33
      +1

      politically correct = addressing the root problem.

    • Baysew on 28/05/2025 - 17:46
      +2

      Thornhill Park.

      • Ocker on 28/05/2025 - 18:42
        +2

        Or maybe Sudan?
        Sadly machete's are part of the culture there, and when we generously accept them as refugees they bring that part of their culture with them.

        • OzzyOzbourne on 28/05/2025 - 20:51

          Unfortunately the people living in rich, safe, homogeneous suburbs won't agree with your lack of diversity.

        • try2bhelpful on 29/05/2025 - 01:28

          And your excuse for the white guys who are violent here? Is that just part of our culture? However, there was a problem with the Vietnamese “gangs” using machetes as well. Was that part of their culture too?

    • JIMB0 on 28/05/2025 - 23:23

      Cranbourne?

  • c64 on 28/05/2025 - 17:27
    +1

    i, for one, welcome our new caveman future where we eat meat with our hands and teeth

    • try2bhelpful on 29/05/2025 - 01:29
      +1

      You eat meat with a machete or a hunting knife?

    • Muppet Detector on 30/05/2025 - 14:32

      How come you still have teeth?

  • trapper on 28/05/2025 - 18:28

    In Western Australia, it’s already illegal to carry an edged weapon of any of length without a lawful excuse.

    That excuse must relate to a specific task you're actively engaged in.

    So you can’t carry a pocket knife or utility knife just in case you might need it. Illegal in WA.

    It's ridiculous.

    • mrdean on 28/05/2025 - 18:31

      Yes, the government decides what you can & can't do. Most people will go along until they are affected personally. All of this stuff is done 'for our safety'.

      • trapper on 28/05/2025 - 18:43

        It's even illegal to have a knife inside a caravan or campervan lol

    • greatlamp on 28/05/2025 - 20:43

      It is already illegal to carry an edged weapon of any of length without a lawful excuse in Victoria. This new law is being applied in addition

      • trapper on 28/05/2025 - 22:06
        +1

        Seems unnecessary then.

        Now people with a legitimate purpose cannot go about their business without the threat of two years jail.

        • pegaxs on 28/05/2025 - 22:18
          +1

          Oh, I want to do gaol time over having a knife, on my own property… how bad arse would that be when your cell mate, in for r@pe and/or murder, asked you what you’re in for…

          “I was out on my own property using a machete for its intended purpose and the cops were driving past and saw me clear some saplings and grass…”

        • Protractor on 28/05/2025 - 22:19

          Talk about completely missing the point

  • eddyah on 28/05/2025 - 18:33
    +11

    Rather than remove knives, I think just catapult the criminals into the ocean. I imagine the problem would sort itself out afterwards…

    If they manage to swim back good for them.

  • Leeroy Jenkins on 28/05/2025 - 18:43
    +3

    Whatever happens, it's always the honest, law abiding, tax paying citizens that get (profanity) over.

    I was once robbed by a couple of teens holding broken glass bottles. Do we ban glass bottles as well? This is (profanity) stupid.

  • Protractor on 28/05/2025 - 19:22
    +2

    Anyway, my machete identifies as a burger flipper.It shouldn't concern anyone, unless they have a head like a burger patty.

  • brendanm on 28/05/2025 - 19:25
    +2

    Excellent, I'm sure it'll be just as effective as the gun laws. No criminals have guns anymore, it's so good.

    • try2bhelpful on 28/05/2025 - 19:35
      +10

      If you look at overseas countries our gun laws are very effective. However, don’t let facts get in the way of your story.

      • brendanm on 28/05/2025 - 20:44
        +3

        I believe you have missed the point. Legitimate users can't get them, but criminals still can. Makes the law pointless.

        • try2bhelpful on 29/05/2025 - 01:31
          +6

          Frankly if you take that attitude then all laws could be called pointless. The harder it is to obtain a weapon the less the issue will occur. If people are stopped with illegal weapons you head off the violence before it occurs. I wonder how many people legitimately need a machete nowadays?

          • brendanm on 29/05/2025 - 06:50
            +1

            @try2bhelpful: This law isn't just for machetes. It's just knives over 20cm. I could get a stick off the ground, rub it on concrete to sharpen it and stab someone with the point. I could get a piece of broken glass, embed it in a stick and stab someone with it. You can buy sharp chisels from bunnings and stab someone with it. Etc etc.

            Anything can be a weapon if you're a violent moron. They'd be much better off sorting these people out before they are allowed to get to this point.

        • smartazz104 on 29/05/2025 - 07:43
          +1

          Legitimate users can't get them

          Define "legitimate users"…

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join