SMITH: The Liberals are coming for Yukoners’ guns

By JONAS SMITH

Last week, hot on the heels of the backdoor gun registry, Bill C-71, the Trudeau Liberal government moved forward on its next phase of harassing law-abiding firearms owners with its initiative to ban handguns and so-called assault weapons.

This has serious consequences for Yukoners, and Yukon’s MP Larry Bagnell needs to clearly state his position on the proposed ban. The federal government’s supposed public consultation began on Oct. 11.

I state “supposed” because Public Safety Canada’s (PS) own website says in-person stakeholder engagement is by invitation only, which is one way to ensure only those who support the Liberals’ pre-determined outcome inform the “process.”

The PS website goes on to put forward the notion of instituting “a ban on handguns and assault weapons in Canada while not impeding on the lawful use of firearms by Canadians.”

Only a Liberal could suggest that a ban won’t impede lawful use.

Yukon has the highest rate of licensed firearms owners per capita in the country. It is therefore no surprise Yukoners also own more guns per capita than other Canadians.

Yukon also has the highest rate of Authorization To Carry (ATC) permits, which allow qualified and eligible civilians to legally carry a handgun in the wilderness for wildlife protection.

These permits are typically issued to prospectors, bush pilots, trappers and hunters who commonly find themselves in situations where long guns are too cumbersome to protect oneself from fast moving and potentially dangerous wildlife.

So instead of doing anything to reduce gang violence in big cities, the Liberals are literally going after rural Canadians who rely on handguns to protect themselves.

But it’s not just ATC holders – not to mention lawful sport shooters and collectors – who will be affected by this far-reaching ban.

“For illustrative purposes,” PS cites an American definition of an assault weapon. I’m sure we can all agree that Canada is far removed from the sensational firearms culture of our southern neighbours.

But the broad definition used reads “semiautomatic firearms with a large magazine of ammunition that were designed and configured for rapid fire,” which encompasses many common non-restricted long guns owned by thousands of Indigenous and non-Indigenous Yukoners that are used every day for predator control and hunting purposes.

I myself use a rifle that fits this description as my preferred grouse hunting rifle to feed my family.

It is seen by many that the Danforth shooting tragedy in Toronto earlier this year was the tipping point and impetus for the proposed ban. This and other senseless tragedies demonstrate that government does have to do more to keep Canadians safe.

But how the Liberals believe limiting Yukoners’ ability to protect themselves and feed their families will somehow have any effect on a gang-affiliated, potentially extremist-inspired, mentally ill murderer with an illegally-owned and likely foreign-smuggled prohibited firearm is beyond comprehension.

Despite any previous claims to the contrary, with this latest initiative one thing is now certain: the Liberals are coming for Yukoners’ guns.

Jonas Smith is the former Deputy Chief of Staff to Yukon Premier Darrell Pasloski and the current candidate to represent Yukon for the Conservative Party of Canada in the next federal election.