Aust-first machete ban more 'political optics' than fix

There were 265 aggravated burglaries in the state over the past 12 months involving machetes. 

The wide-bladed weapons were also part of three homicides in the past six months.

"The United Kingdom took 18 months to work through a ban on machetes," Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan told reporters on Thursday.

"We're doing this in six months."

Victorian police confiscated more than 15,000 edged-weapons in 2024, a 10-year high, acting Chief Commissioner Rick Nugent said.

Machetes were increasingly being used by youth gangs in street fights, assaults, carjackings, aggravated burglaries and home invasions.

Under the legislation to hit the upper house next week, those caught carrying a machete would face up to two years in prison or fines of more than $47,000.

The state government hasn't settled on what constitutes a machete but said they can be broadly defined as a knife with a blade of more than 20cm.

A three-month amnesty from September 1 to November 30 allows people to dispose of machetes in secure bins at sites such as police stations without facing penalties.

"Machetes are destroying lives ... and we want to destroy machetes," Ms Allan said.

Exemptions after the ban will only be provided in limited circumstances, including for hunting and agriculture.

Natalia Antolak-Saper, a senior lecturer in law at Monash University, said the proposed ban might reduce visibility but was unlikely to significantly deter determined offenders.

"This proposal feels more like a response to political optics (i.e. visible weapons, media-fuelled crime anxiety) than a comprehensive crime prevention strategy," Dr Antolak-Saper told AAP.

She pointed out people carrying machetes with the intent to commit crimes are likely already disregarding existing weapons laws.

"Offenders may simply substitute machetes with other weapons, such as knives, bats, or tools, which raises concerns about displacement, not deterrence," Dr Antolak-Saper said.

Machetes were made a controlled weapon in March 2024, meaning they could not be possessed, carried, or used without a lawful excuse or sold to anyone under 18.

But the Allan government has repeatedly blocked opposition moves since 2023 to introduce an outright machete ban.

"We take advice from Victoria Police, not from the opposition," Police Minister Anthony Carbines said.

Opposition police spokesman David Southwick said the coalition had made four attempts, the first as far back as 471 days ago, to ban machetes and each was ignored.

"Every Victorian feels less safe under Jacinta Allan because she hasn't acted sooner," he said.

The premier wants major retailers to stop ordering machetes ahead of the ban, and Victoria will write to the federal government to take action on imports and explore a national ban.

Victorian Police Association secretary Wayne Gatt said there was no legitimate need for machetes on the streets, describing the weapons as "tools of terror and intimidation".

NSW recently made it an offence to possess or wield a knife in a public place or school, while Queensland has banned the sale of knives to people under 18.

It is illegal to carry knives in public places without a lawful excuse in the ACT, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

In addition, Victorian police are set to be allowed to conduct random and targeted weapons searches in designated areas for up to six months instead of up to 12 hours.

Officers don't need a warrant to stop people in the areas but Mr Nugent sought to reassure the public that police rely on "intelligence".