With the federal government having recently introduced legislation that, if passed, will dramatically change gun control in Canada, owners and users of firearms in rural Alberta are facing new challenges.
The latest move by the Trudeau Liberals comes several months after the government outlawed more than 1,500 types of assault-style guns, a ban that has raised the ire of many gun owners in Alberta.
Bill C-21 includes buy-back provisions for those banned firearms and new rules allowing owners to keep the guns under much stricter conditions.
The legislation also includes provisions allowing police, doctors, and victims of domestic abuse to identify gun owners they believe may pose a threat to themselves or others.
New penalties for licensed buyers who purchase guns on behalf of unlicensed ones are also part of Bill C-21.
Proponents of tougher gun laws say the changes are needed to reduce gun violence, including helping to prevent mass shootings like the horrific killing of 22 people in Nova Scotia in April 2020.
“We know there is more to do on strengthening gun control in Canada, which is why we are moving forward,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Opponents of the government’s plans say it will do little to stop gun violence, but represents an unreasonable attack on private property ownership and the legal use of firearms for hunting and recreation.
With a federal election possible within the next 12 months, the issue of firearms control may end up being a campaign topic, much as it has been in Canadian elections for the past many years.
Whether voter-rich urban Ontario and Quebec will be as interested in making gun control a high-priority election issue as some western Canadians would like it to be remains to be seen.
What is known is that with this new firearms legislation in the form of Bill C-21 now before Parliament, the debate over who should and who shouldn’t have guns is sure to reach new heights in the days and weeks to come.
Dan Singleton is an editor with The Albertan
