Actually, what they did in Australia was forced confiscation under the guise of a buy back.

In Australia, you have to apply for a license to buy a firearm  You can only get a license by proving the need for the firearm.  If you are a recreational shooter, you have to belong to a club and use the club's firearms for six months before applying for a license.  Self protection is not a valid reason for a license.

Once you get your license, you cannot purchase:

Any form of semi automatic firearm, including 22's.  Any pump action shotguns.  Handguns are extremely restricted.

What they did is set the penalties for possession to an extreme number of years in prison and then offered to "buy back" those firearms.  They only did the buy back after their high courts ruled they simply could not confiscate the weapons.

Unfortunately for Australia, and fortunately for us, we have the Second Amendment.

Bloomberg isn't just about guns, he's also about restricting tobacco and big gulp sodas.