New Democrats table long-gun bill

OTTAWA – New Democrat MP Charlie Angus (Timmins-James Bay) announced he has tabled legislation today on the long-gun registry. His new bill respects the concerns of rural Canadians while enhancing public safety. His bill was seconded by Claude Gravelle, the New Democrat MP for Nickel Belt.

“Moving forward on the registry isn’t rocket science, but it does take common-sense leadership,” said Angus. “We listened faithfully to rural Canadians concerned about their way of life and we listened to urban Canadians concerned about public safety. This bill finds a common ground.”

Now that the bill is before the House, New Democrats said they can begin broad public consultations with stakeholders on all sides. Angus said he will be looking to build a wide base of support for this initiative, including from other parties.

“Part of the problem all along with the registry was the lack of consultation with hunters, farmers and other gun owners,” said Gravelle. “Now we have an opportunity to do what should have happened a long time ago – get rural and urban Canadians talking to each other about public safety.”

New Democrats described this bill as launching a conversation to tear down stereotypes. Now that the bill can be released publicly, they will be looking for suggestions that can further improve these proposals. New Democrats are looking for ways to distinguish honest errors made by well meaning citizens with regard to the registration of unrestricted firearms from cases where criminal charges may be warranted.

The legislation includes a number of concrete solutions for rural and urban Canadians, as well as Northern and Aboriginal communities. They include:

• providing a first-time exemption from criminal penalty for not registering a long-gun
• mandating the Auditor General to provide financial oversight of the registry
• protecting the privacy of gun owners’ identifying information
• creating a legal guarantee to uphold Aboriginal treaty rights
• establishing permanently free registration
• allowing military and police to share important information with the Canadian Firearms Program, including mental health concerns