Lawful gun owners feel cheated by new federal firearms ban

The federal government expanded its ban on firearms on Thursday, adding 324 makes and models of guns to the prohibited weapons list, and lawful gun owners in Alberta feel they’re being unnecessarily targeted.

The move follows the May 2020 ban of 1,500 makes and models of firearms, including the AR-15 and Ruger Mini-14. The number grew to more than 2,000 by November of this year as new variants were identified.

The federal government says it is working with provinces, territories and police on a planned buyback of prohibited weapons from individual owners. It has already run a pilot project on collecting banned firearms from businesses.

Lethbridge’s Justin Thomson was one of three Canadians who were hand-picked to compete in the World Pistol Caliber Carbine (PCC) Competition in the Czech Republic next spring, but with the new ban in place, he can no longer practice and is now unsure if he will be able to compete.

“We work hard, we’re passionate, and now it’s just all been taken away from us,” said Thomson.

The federal government says the new ban is part of its commitment to tackle gun crime and keep communities safe, but competitive shooters say it overlooks action shooting and targets lawful gun owners.

The Canadian Coalition for Firearms Rights said the announcement was typical Liberal party “divide and conquer” politics.

“They know they are out of time and Canadians are out of money.”

Alberta Justice Minister Mickey Amery said the provincial government strongly opposes “the arbitrary reclassification of firearms and the federal government’s wasteful, ineffective, and repeatedly delayed program to confiscate these firearms.”

The newly banned firearms share the same technical characteristics as those prohibited in May 2020. It means they can no longer be legally used or sold in Canada, and can be transferred or transported only under limited circumstances.

Officials made it clear that additional makes and models could be added to the list of banned firearms, saying an expert panel will provide advice on guns that are still on the market.

For instance, the SKS rifle, which has been used in shooting sprees, remains legal.

Federal Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said a decision on the firearm, used by many Indigenous people for hunting, would be made by February before the next phase of the buyback program.

“We want to reflect on this over the coming weeks.”

Late last year, Parliament passed a government bill that cemented restrictions on handguns, increased penalties for firearm trafficking and aimed to curb homemade ghost guns.

The government says it is working to fully implement the bill, with remaining provisions to come into force early in the new year.

The legislation included a ban on assault-style firearms that fall under a new technical definition. However, the definition didn’t apply to models that were already on the market when the bill passed.

The government says it intends to table regulatory amendments in Parliament on Dec. 13, following through on commitments to make sure that all makes and models of firearms are accounted for prior to entering the Canadian market.

Watch the video in the player at the top of this story to learn more.

— With files from Jim Bronskill, The Canadian Press

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