Police are set to get more powers to help keep guns out of the hands of criminals, gangs and high risk offenders.

But first the Government wants to find out if a new regime would impinge on human rights, before giving the go ahead.

On Monday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Police Minister Stuart Nash announced a proposed tough gun law in the form of 'Firearm Prohibition Orders (FPO)'.

These are orders - that could be issued by either police or judges - that could potentially ban some people from possessing, using, accessing or being around firearms.

Last month Stuff revealed that Nash proposed the new regime to Cabinet and was considering upping police powers, through a review of the Crimes Act and proceeds of crime laws, that target gang hierarchies.

Nash said the Government had been working on implementing an FPO regime before the March 15 massacre to support and complement the proposals in the Arms Legislation Bill.

The regime would need to be carefully balanced, so the Government had released a discussion document to get public input to help shape the rules, and decide who should issue the bans, he said.

It also wanted feedback on where the public believed the line should be drawn on human rights versus v community safety.

police had seized about 1600 firearms from gangs and other offenders

"We have been open that FPOs would come at a potential cost to human rights protections such as the right to be secure against unreasonable search."

Since March police had seized about 1600 firearms from gangs and other offenders.

• Gang recruitment spike ‘homegrown’ issue
• Mongrel Mob opens doors to confront its dark history
• Home detention for the driver who took a shooter to confront others
• 10,000 gun licence holders have convictions for violence or sexual offending

"It alarms me how often police are turning up to events where there is a firearm .... criminal organisations are becoming more sophisticated, more organised and a lot more willing to present or use guns. We need to ensure police have the resources to deal with this." Nash said.

The regime had the potential to further disrupt criminal organisations and the number of FPOs issued could very between 20 to a few hundred a year, he said.

They would target high-risk people who did not have a gun licence, particularly those with a history of violent offending, gun crimes or family violence.

FPOs would set conditions that people must follow and allow police to monitor and create penalties for breaches.

Police would be given greater powers to investigate people, search properties, confiscate illegal firearms parts and ammunition and monitor people with a history of offending.

"FPOs would prevent people from being around others who have firearms, using them under supervision, or being at a location that enables access to guns," Nash said.

In practice this would mean that a person subject to an FPO could not be in a place where guns are held or stored.

"FPOs are aimed at those who have already shown a disregard for the law through prior offending, which may include offending with firearms. They could be a gang member, or part of an extremist ideological group, or a person with a history of family harm," Nash said.

• Auditor-General to assess 'effectiveness' of gun buyback scheme
• Data breaches spark claims gun register will endanger families, embolden criminals
• Government considers National's bid to give police 'greater powers' over gun control
• Gun owners 'feel like victims', Winston Peters told

He sought to find out public views on the type of previous convictions that could make a person eligible and the extent of police enforcement powers, such as searching people and property without a warrant.

It also wanted feedback on whether police or judges should make decisions about FPOs.

Ardern said this was a separate piece of work from the other trances of gun reform that saw a ban on assault rifles and military style semi-automatics, proposed firearms register and a tighter system for firearms licences.

"We have already acknowledged that we see gun ownership, gun usage and access to guns as a privilege and one where you have to constantly demonstrate that you can meet [that[ responsibility."

Governments grappled with getting the balance right between assuring public safety and appropriate constraints, checks and balances around police, she said.

FPOs were first considered by the previous government in 2014 but the idea failed to make progress.

We have made a lot of changes to our firearms laws this year, all with the same intent 

A Select Committee also recommended change in early 2017. Other proposals in a National Party Members Bill but were rejected by the Government in 2018 because they were too narrow, Nash said.

National's proposed Bill concentrated on gangs and did not provide police with extra powers of search, he said.

"We have made a lot of changes to our firearms laws this year, all with the same intent – to protect our communities from the harm that firearms can inflict in the wrong hands."

Consultation will close on January 13, 2020.

Meanwhile, Opposition leader Simon Bridges has claimed the Government bowed to pressure from the National Party but praised it for starting to focus on dangerous criminals and not just law-abiding gun users.

He was not impressed the Government was taking even more time to consult on the regime: "It should just get on and do it."