Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is defending her proposed Firearms Prohibition Orders, after they received a mixed reaction inside parliament.
The Government is seeking feedback on the new orders, which would be aimed at those with a history of violent offending, gun crimes or family harm.
They could also prevent people from living at or visiting a property where firearms are kept and would give the police greater powers of search and confiscation.
But Green Party justice spokesperson Golriz Ghahraman says some of the provisions in the orders could breach human rights.
"The one that really jumps out at this point, for example, is warrantless search powers.
"So you know, we we're giving police extra powers without them being governed by our usual search and surveillance or search and seizure laws that put a lot more safeguards around things like that.
"And we know that where police abuses of power do happen they disproportionately are used against Māori or Pasifika people."
But Ms Ardern told Morning Report the Government needs to have more options.
"We simply we do not have the ability for someone, for instance, who is a repeat violent criminal within our current regime to prohibit someone being in a premises, where firearms may be legally held, and legally owned.
"So we can't stop someone being in the vicinity or having access to firearms. And so this is why we considering whether or not this is an additional suite of options that would be useful to us."
Meanwhile the National Party is accusing the Government of simply adapting an idea it put forward in a Member's Bill in 2018.
"It was the work of a select committee in the last Parliament that recommended Firearms Prohibition Orders," National Party firearms spokesperson Brett Hudson told Morning Report.
"National campaigned on those, Labour didn't. We put a Bill together. Despite saying they're in favour of public safety (Police Minister) Nash and Labour voted it down last year. Now they're just redirecting what is our idea and trying to say it's theirs."
But Ms Ardern says that's not the case and the National Party Bill didn't go as far as the Government's proposal.
"They focus solely on gang membership and affiliation, this proposal and consultation document, suggests three options for who these orders may apply. It sets out clearly, should they apply simply to those who have violent offenses, should extend into those with breaches of protection orders, for instance."
