Gun owner candidate says signage rules make him a target

Candidates fear Tasmanian election signage address requirement puts families at risk Sat 8 Aug 2026 at 8:56am In short: Independent candidates in local government elections say rules requiring an address on signage and leaflets puts safety at risk. A prominent firearms advocate fears the requirement could make his home a target for gun theft. What's next? The chair of an electoral matters committee says candidates have a "valid concern" but warns it may be "tricky" to amend the laws before the elections. As a staunch firearms advocate, Phillip Bigg says he is regularly "going after criminals" by pushing for stronger punishments for those who steal guns and use them to commit crimes. He is concerned a Tasmanian law that requires him to include an address on any election material he puts up for his upcoming council tilt may turn his home into a target for potential gun thieves. "Putting my address out there while I'm attacking criminals, it's a disaster waiting to happen," the Tasmanian president of Shooters Union Australia said. "It's just an absolutely idiotic idea that we need to do this. "We have technology these days where you are so easily contactable, unlike when this [law] was first introduced." According to the Local Government Act 1993, all election material such as advertisements, signs or pamphlets must include the "true name and address" of whoever produced them. The address must be either where the person resides, or somewhere they can be readily contacted. It cannot be a post office box or an email. Candidates running with major parties have typically used their party headquarters for the address, but this was not necessarily an option for independent candidates. Loading...Mr Bigg, who is running for a spot on the Derwent Valley Council in southern Tasmania, said it was an outdated law that put candidates at risk. "There are so many candidates out there that have experienced threats of violence or death threats,"he said. The firearms advocate said he had personally received two death threats within the past year and his home had been targeted in a "ram raid". Concern for domestic violence survivors Emma Goyne is an elected member for Clarence City Council on Hobart's eastern shore where she plans to run for re-election. She said as a domestic violence survivor the requirement to publicise an address was a significant concern. "I understand there's obviously a lot of people in similar situations that don't want to nominate because they don't want to disclose their address," Cr Goyne said. "Particularly as women and mothers, highlighting the family home where your child resides and that being published is quite concerning." Cr Goyne said she "cannot see any logic" behind the law, especially in the digital age when most people are quite easily contactable. She said candidates should be permitted to list an email address, a phone number or a PO box. "If they're not going to allow it as a blanket rule, allow [candidates] to apply for an exemption under special circumstances," Cr Goyne said. 'Tricky' to update law ahead of elections, MLC warns Mick Tucker, president of the Local Government Association of Tasmania (LGAT) and Break O-Day council mayor, said the concerns raised by Mr Bigg and Cr Goyne were "extremely valid". He said LGAT recommended the law be changed, but it was unclear if this would be supported by the state government. The submission was to the draft local government amendment bill, but Cr Tucker said the bill was unlikely to be updated before Tasmania's upcoming council elections in October. "This year's election will operate under the current rules so it's really important for the candidates to note the address does not have to be their home address," he said. "It can be a work address or another address where the person can be contacted if they need to be." Cr Tucker said it was "necessary" for the Tasmanian Electoral Commission (TEC) to hold the real addresses and contact details of potential councillors to ensure they were genuine candidates. He said LGAT believes it was not necessary for it to be put on public signage. Independent MLC Meg Webb also warned it could be "tricky" to update the legislation in time for this year's elections. Ms Webb is chair of the joint standing committee on electoral matters within Tasmanian parliament, which formally reviews electoral law issues and makes recommendations to the government. "I think this is a really valid concern … and it's certainly a matter to consider from a safety perspective,"she said. Mr Bigg said he had a meeting scheduled with local government minister Kerry Vincent in which he would push to have the laws updated this year. "I think this can be fixed this year quite easily with a couple of single line amendments in legislation," Mr Bigg said. "If [Mr] Vincent returns to parliament next week and perhaps tables an amendment bill, I don't see any reasons why members of parliament wouldn't support and pass it." Some states have updated law A government spokesperson said the requirements for advertising authorisation reflected state and federal electoral acts and were "ensuring consistency across all levels of government". Robert Hortle, deputy director of the Tasmanian Policy Exchange, said the rule reflected the principles of transparency, accountability and traceability that existed in many electoral laws. Mr Hortle said the same requirement was in place for state and federal elections. However, some states have updated their legislation at a local government level. "New South Wales and Western Australia have the same rule as Tasmania, but Victoria and Queensland, for example, are a little bit different,"Dr Hortle said. "[In those states] they allow people running for local government to use PO boxes as their contactable address." Dr Hortle also said in New Zealand, candidates were able to use a phone number or a website with a contact form, instead of a physical address. "The key thing is, as long as we're upholding that principle of accountability and transparency, then I'm sure there are plenty of more modern solutions that we could look at," he said. Mr Bigg said if the rule could not be amended ahead of the local government elections, he would consider pursuing the matter in court, as he felt it contradicted privacy and protection laws.