Ottawa urged to regulate firearms without delay

Photo: Justin Tang Archives The Canadian Press A man holds a pistol during the Cansec 2022 event in Ottawa, Canada's largest annual gun show. Illustration photo.

Jim Bronskill – The Canadian Press in Ottawa

Published at 1:52 p.m.

• Canada

Several civil society groups, including women’s rights organizations, are calling on the Trudeau government to quickly complete the gun legislation passed last year with crucial regulations and guidelines.

Last December, Parliament approved a bill that includes new measures to keep guns out of the hands of individuals responsible for domestic violence. It also strengthens restrictions on handguns, increases penalties for gun trafficking, and aims to curb homemade ghost guns.

A detailed submission endorsed by various concerned organizations urges the government to take the necessary regulatory steps to activate measures aimed at curbing domestic violence.

“We sincerely believe that some of these measures will make a difference in ensuring the safety of women,” said Suzanne Zaccour, director of legal affairs for the National Association of Women and the Law, one of the groups behind the document sent to federal ministers. “That is why we are advocating for these important sections to come into force as soon as possible.” »

The brief urges the government to adopt an order in council to bring into force the amendments to the Firearms Act contained in the Family Violence Bill, namely:

• Section 6.1, which makes a person who is the subject of a protection order or who has been convicted of an offence involving violence ineligible to hold a firearms licence;
• Section 70.1, which requires a chief firearms officer who has reasonable grounds to suspect that a licence holder may have engaged in domestic violence or stalking to revoke the licence within 24 hours;
• Section 70.2, which automatically revokes the licence of a person who is the subject of a protection order and requires them to surrender their firearms to a peace officer within 24 hours.

200% Deposit Bonus up to €3,000 180% First Deposit Bonus up to $20,000

The submission also calls for new regulatory measures to ensure compliance with a previously introduced requirement that firearms dealers verify the validity of a potential buyer’s licence. “There have been many cases where a person whose licence had been revoked or expired has managed to purchase a firearm which they have subsequently used against their intimate partner or ex-partner. »

Raising awareness and prohibiting

The federal government should ensure that an awareness campaign aimed at police, courts, the public and women's shelters includes up-to-date information about the new intervention standards for removing access to firearms under section 70.1, as well as the expanded definition of domestic violence in the Firearms Act, the brief adds.

Among those who supported the recommendations were pro-gun control groups including PolySeSouvient, Canadian Physicians for Protection from Guns, the Canadian Federation of University Women, Ending Violence Association of Canada, Women’s Shelters Canada, YWCA Canada, Danforth Families for Safe Communities, the Fédération des femmes du Québec and the Fédération des Maisons d’hébergement pour femmes au Québec.

The Department of Public Safety did not immediately respond to questions about the brief.

The bill passed by Parliament also includes a ban on assault weapons that fall under a new technical definition. However, it does not apply to models that were already on the market when the bill was passed.

Earlier this summer, PolySeSouvient spokesperson Nathalie Provost wrote to Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc asking him to follow through on his plans to buy back banned assault weapons, including the AR-15, ban those that have slipped through the cracks of the legislation, and strengthen regulations on high-capacity magazines.

At the time, Minister LeBlanc’s office said it was “continuing to implement strict measures to combat gun violence.”