NSW Police will have the power to conduct knife wanding searches in any public place and at any time under a commonsense reform proposed by the NSW Liberals and Nationals.
The NSW Opposition will move amendments to the Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Amendment (Knife Scanning) Bill 2026 when Parliament resumes in August to better protect the community.
The law changes follow an inquest into the Westfield Bondi Junction attack in which six people were killed and a recommendation by NSW State Coroner Magistrate Teresa O’Sullivan to assess whether knife scanning operations should be allowed at crowded places without the need for a declaration.
Leader of the Opposition Kellie Sloane said knife scanning should occur wherever police have reasonable concerns.
“The clumsy process of requiring a senior police officer to make a declaration every 24 hours setting out where and when knife wanding would take place is a waste of police time and undermines the effectiveness of our officers,” Ms Sloane said.
“Our anytime, anywhere policy is exactly the kind of commonsense tool we need to equip our police with so they are empowered to protect the community from knife crimes.”
Acting Shadow Attorney General Susan Carter said the Minns Labor Government is creating new loopholes in its current Bill.
“The Minns Labor Government’s approach is reckless and absurd in narrowing the scope of police wanding operations on public transport to just the first two stations either side of a declared public transport area,” Ms Carter said.
“A knife carrier who tried to avoid wanding at a Parramatta station platform and jumped on an express to Central would be successful unless a police officer succeeded not only in jumping on the same train but wanding the offender within the 150 seconds it would take to pass Granville.”
Shadow Minister for Police and Counter Terrorism Anthony Roberts said a handheld wand is a simple and minimally intrusive tool that can help police detect a weapon before it is used.
“Knife crime can happen anywhere, anytime, and police need the flexibility to respond wherever the risk emerges,” Mr Roberts said.
“Our police officers make difficult operational decisions every day. They should be trusted to determine when and where knife wanding is needed to keep people safe.”
The amendments would retain existing safeguards governing the use of knife-scanning powers, including requirements for police to explain the search and identify themselves.
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