Gun registry announcement is a step in the right direction

OFAH File: 842/401-11
May 17, 2006

For Immediate Release

Gun registry announcement is a step in the right direction

Today, there are more nails in the coffin of the federal long gun registry, and no one could be happier than thousands of law-abiding gun owners represented by the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters.

“Regulation changes to the gun registry, announced today by Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day, are a step in the right direction. This announcement, backed by the scathing Auditor General’s report, speaks volumes about how little the government, the police and taxpayers can trust the long gun registry,” said O.F.A.H. Executive Director, Mike Reader. “We congratulate the government and wish them well in pushing for legislation that will ultimately abolish the gun registry, as the O.F.A.H. has advocated.”

In a televised press conference, Stockwell Day said the government plan is to eliminate the costly gun registry, and in moving forward with that plan, he introduced the following regulation changes:

• Reduce the registry’s annual operating by $10 million;
• Reimburse law-abiding long gun owners by implementing license renewal fee waivers and refunds;
• Eliminate the physical verification of nonrestricted firearms;
• Introduce a one-year amnesty to protect previously licensed owners of nonrestricted firearms from prosecution and to encourage them to comply with the law by May 17, 2007;
• As a complement to these decisive steps, the government intends to table legislation which will repeal the requirement to register nonrestricted firearms.

Mr. Day also acknowledged all those individuals and organizations, such as the O.F.A.H., that have worked on this issue for years and kept it in the forefront. Last month, when Stockwell Day met with O.F.A.H. representatives, we reaffirmed our members’ position that reducing crime should start with consequences for criminals, not punishments for law-abiding hunters and farmers.

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