Extending the Firearms Amnesty


Moore from Ottawa
By Fundy Royal M.P. Rob Moore
April 12, 2007


Greetings from Ottawa,

When I meet constituents, I repeatedly hear about the failed gun registry. They ask how the former Liberal government could waste billions of dollars on a program that proved to be totally ineffective. Canadians understand what the Liberals do not; counting and tracking every gun is simply a waste of money and does not protect Canadians.

Our Conservative government has listened to Canadians and introduced legislation to scrap the long-gun registry. I fully support Bill C-21, a bill that once passed, will repeal the requirement for long-gun owners to register their hunting rifles and shotguns. However, in a minority government situation, repealing the long-gun registry will require the support of a majority in the House of Commons and, to date, all opposition parties have opposed Bill C-21.

Our Conservative government did introduce a series of non-legislative measures to ease the burdens on firearms owners. These measures included introducing a one-year amnesty so previously-licensed owners of non-restricted firearms can register their guns or renew their licenses without threat of criminal prosecution.

I am pleased to report that on April 7, 2007, the Conservative government proposed in the Canada Gazette to extend the firearms amnesty for one more year. In order to achieve effective gun control, we must encourage compliance among firearms owners and encourage former license holders to come back into lawful compliance with existing licensing and registration requirements.

For that reason, we are seeking comments on a proposal to extend the firearms amnesty for one more year and if approved, the extension would be in effect until May 16, 2008. It would also provide an additional period for non-restricted firearm owners to become compliant with existing licensing and registration requirements.

You can comment on this amnesty extension at the Canada Firearms Centre website located at http://www.cfc-cafc.gc.ca until April 21, 2007.

Our Conservative government is committed to protecting Canadians, keeping our streets and communities safe and to preventing firearms from ending up in the wrong hands.

I welcome your feedback on this or any issue at moorer@parl.gc.ca