The Port Arthur tragedy of 28 April 1996 revived the debate on control of firearms. The Australian community was outraged not only because so many innocent people lost their lives but also because the incident occurred in a setting where it was least expected. Commonwealth and State governments reflected community concerns and moved jointly towards the development of uniform firearms legislation. The gun buy-back scheme has attracted encouraging responses and by 16 May 1997, 396 884 firearms had been handed in. The Australian Institute of Criminology will monitor the implementation of new firearm legislation. As the dust settles, responsible individuals and agencies are grappling with the methods and procedures to assess the impact of such measures on the level of violence in Australia. This Trends and Issues paper makes an important contribution to this process.