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MD of Bonnyville advocating against federal gun ban regulations

The MD of Bonnyville is joining other municipalities to advocate against the federal gun ban regulations
MD sign
MD of Bonnyville signage

BONNYVILLE – The group of municipalities against the federal gun ban gained another supporter.

MD of Bonnyville council passed a motion during its Sept. 23 meeting to write a letter to the federal government against changes to legistlation that came into effect earlier this year, after hearing back from the Bonnyville Shooting Sports Association (BSSA).

Council originally discussed the issue back in July when it received correspondence from the City of Cold Lake, which was sent out to municipalities in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, requesting municipalities voice their concerns and lobby against the restrictions.

Before making a decision, the local municipality wanted to hear from local gun clubs.

In a letter, the BSSA said the government of Canada’s “executive order would strip law-abiding Canadians it has approved through the RCMP Canada Firearms program of their legally purchased property.”

"It would unfairly target Canadian firearm owners who are already among the most vetted in Canadian society,” it continued. “Possession and Acquisition License (PAL) and Restricted PAL (RPAL) holders are subject to daily screening and are statistically proven to be less likely to commit crimes than non-PAL and non-RPAL holders.”

The BSSA stressed the new law wouldn’t take firearms away from the criminals and would cost ‘hundreds of millions of dollars’ for the federal government to buy them back from gun owners.

“We believe that the money could be better spent with funding for education towards firearms, police to help fight crime, stronger border security to stop the import of illegal ‘crime guns’ from other countries, as well as funding mental health and fighting poverty in our Canadian communities.”

An issue raised by Reeve Greg Sawchuk was the fact that the prohibition on over 1,500 assault-style firearms and devices, which came into effect on May 1, targets a specific firearm simply because of how it looks.

“It’s a lot about what they look like and that’s where the government is kind of overstepping,” he noted. “Just because something looks like an assault rifle, but it’s still semi-automatic, but they still want to make it illegal.”

The MD joins other municipalities and gun clubs from across the province advocating against the ban.

Robynne Henry, Bonnyville Nouvelle

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