OTTAWA –
The Canadian government is moving to ban the importation of restricted handguns from August 19.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino and Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Jolie announced on Friday that the federal government had decided to proceed with the import ban without parliamentary approval, changing the policy through regulatory restrictions.
The measure will prevent individuals and businesses from importing handguns into Canada, the government says.
The government says the upcoming regulations will effectively speed up some aspects of the planned freeze. The move is temporary, however, with plans to remain in place only until the previously promised permanent import ban is passed in Ottawa.
“This ban is a temporary measure while the weapons freeze in its entirety moves through the parliamentary process, preventing the shelves from being reloaded in the immediate future,” Joly said.
In late May, the Liberals introduced Bill C-21, legislation that, if passed, would further restrict legal access to handguns in Canada. The bill includes a specific section that stops short of a total ban, opting instead for a national “freeze” on the sale, purchase or transfer of handguns in Canada, allowing current legal owners to keep theirs.
Bill C-21 also seeks to establish systems to mark individuals who may pose a risk to themselves or others and increase maximum penalties for firearm-related crimes such as firearm smuggling and trafficking.
The incoming regulations announced Friday will include “narrow exemptions that mirror those in Bill C-21,” the government said.
Joly said the Liberals decided to do this because when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Bill C-21, there was a “surge” in gun purchases in Canada.
“We want to prevent that. That is why we are announcing this import ban… We know that the majority of handguns in the country are imported because there is no handgun manufacturer in the country,” Jolly said.
The move is likely to receive a mixed reaction from gun control and gun rights groups, but the government says law enforcement seized more than twice as many firearms at the border in 2021 compared to 2020.
There are approximately 1.1 million registered handguns in Canada as of 2020, according to federal data.
There is more…
With files from CTV News’ Michael Lee
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