Nanaimo Fish and Game

Gun vendors baffled by the rules as ambiguous assault-rifle ban rolls out

Patrick White
Published June 3, 2020

Gun-shop owners are reeling from the slow-motion rollout of Ottawa’s ban on assault-style rifles, a measure that has led to the prohibition of far more models than the government had estimated, including dozens that don’t appear to fit the description of assault weapons.

When he announced the ban on May 1, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said it would affect 1,500 models.

But one month in, the RCMP has added prohibition designations to 1,924 firearm models, according to Armalytics, a pro-firearm website that tracks changes to the Firearms Reference Table (FRT), the RCMP’s database of all known gun models and their legal status in Canada. More firearms are being added every week without any public notice as the RCMP interprets the ban’s language and how it applies to the roughly 100,000 firearms models listed in the FRT. Continue Reading →

May 26, 2020, Calgary, AB

Today the Canadian Coalition for Firearm Rights filed an Application in Federal Court in opposition to the recent firearm ban announced by the minority Liberal government on May 1. This ban was brought into effect by an Order in Council made by the Governor in Council amending the regulation that classifies firearms in Canada. The CCFR’s Application asks the Federal Court to strike down the amended regulation on the grounds that:

1. The regulation is invalid, unlawful, and outside of the scope of powers the Criminal Code could have delegated to the Governor in Council;
2. The regulation and the means by which is was created and amended is unconstitutional;
3. The regulation and its effect breaches each of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Bill of Rights, and section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982;
4. The exercise of the regulation-making power by the Governor in Council was and is irrational, and contrary to clear fact and all available evidence; and
5. Specifically, the firearms purported to be banned by this Order in Council are obviously suitable for hunting and sporting purposes in Canada, because that is exactly what we have been doing with them for decades.

Following the Order in Council, the RCMP began making amendments to the Firearms Reference Table (“FRT”), changing the classification of hundreds of firearms to “prohibited”, thereby unilaterally writing law and creating criminals out of law-abiding Canadians. Accordingly, the CCFR is asking the Court to declare that these purported “bans by FRT” are of no force or effect, both for similar reasons as applied to the regulation above, as well as the fact that the RCMP simply have no legal power to unilaterally make laws reclassifying firearms in Canada and creating criminals out of Canadians. This is especially troubling given that the RCMP aren’t even notifying the affected Canadians about these unilateral reclassifications.

Because the firearms affected by the regulation and the “bans by FRT” are in fact reasonable for use in Canada for hunting and sporting purposes, the CCFR is asking the Court for a declaration of that, and also for a consequential declaration that all of these firearms are to be deemed to be classified as non-restricted for all purposes, and therefore may be enjoyed by Canadians for both hunting and sporting purposes.

In order to protect the interests of Canadians from irreparable harm in the interim, the CCFR is also asking the Court to grant an injunction staying the effect of both the regulation and the “ban by FRT”, until these matters can be properly adjudicated.

This court action is the first in a series of actions planned by the CCFR to defend the rights, freedoms and liberty of law-abiding Canadians.

A copy of the Notice of Application can be found here.

NO POLITICAL OPPORTUNITY WASTED – NO MATTER HOW MISGUIDED
Posted by Ryan Simper on 2^nd May 2020

I remember vividly at the Taccom Industry Dinner in 2019 when John Hipwell, founder of Wolverine Supplies, stated after receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award that if the Liberals held power after the Federal Election: “it’s over…we’re finished”. Mr. Hipwell was encouraging political involvement in a room full of industry members whose very professional lives depended on a political outcome. How many of them did so is unknown.
For my part, I dove right in and took the reins as the Campaign Manager for one of our local Conservative Party of Canada candidates. Political involvement has always been a big part of my life. As a firearm owner, politics is second nature and a means to an end in order to continue enjoying The Canadian Shooting Sports.
On October 21st, 2019, the numbers rolled in. My candidate lost and the Liberal Party of Canada maintained control of the House of Commons, albeit with a minority government. It was a dire outcome for The Canadian Shooting Sports Community. There was no question that soon, many firearms owned by some of the most highly-vetted and responsible citizens in the country would be prohibited. It was not a matter of if – but when. Continue Reading →

Newest update: April 30 at 19:15 Toronto time.

CLICK HERE to see the list of banned firearms

RCMP Release about the Firearms ban

Canada’s governing Liberal Party may order new gun prohibitions this week as the first step in its mass confiscations against hunters, farmers, sport shooters and collectors, CBC News reported.

The Gun Blog estimates banning the 125,000 rifles and carbines named in this first wave of planned seizures will wipe out some $400 million invested in firearms and accessories. Continue Reading →