But with the continual barrage of mass shootings in the United States, the issue is not likely to go away anytime soon. Almost weekly incidents of gun violence in Toronto pretty much guarantee that Liberals will not be able to dodge the question in the upcoming election.
By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on August 12, 2019.
OTTAWA—Guns are now a mental problem. So says American president Donald Trump, who continues to claim there is “no political appetite” for legislation governing the guns themselves even though he is finally admitting that it might be wise to improve background checks on those who want to purchase them.
On this side of the border, Liberals seem equally flummoxed in their plan to restrict weapon access in Canadian cities.
In reacting to multiple shootings in Toronto last weekend, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said a package of gun reforms would be included in the Liberal campaign.
He was responding to mounting calls in Toronto, Montreal, and elsewhere to ban handguns in Canada’s major cities. Toronto Mayor John Tory reinforced a near-unanimous city council request after 17 people were involved in weekend shootings. Goodale also referenced action on domestic terrorism, specifically pointing to white supremacy movements that seem to be gaining ground in our country and elsewhere.
While Goodale’s comments were welcomed, many are wondering what the Liberals are waiting for.
A strong response to recent shootings in Canada and the United States would certainly be welcomed in many constituencies where Liberal support has been slipping.
Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction Bill Blair’s handling of the gun file has left many supporters scratching their heads. A member of the public consultation process on guns resigned because she could not support the government’s weak-kneed response to a 2015 election promise of gun reform.
A briefing note published last year by Public Safety Canada downplayed the effectiveness of a handgun ban, claiming it would “primarily affect” collectors and sport shooters who own most of the country’s 900,000 registered handguns, while having only an “indirect” impact on the illicit market by reducing the number of weapons that could be potentially diverted or stolen.
The note also suggested that the evidence on the effectiveness of gun bans remains inconclusive.
“In all cases, the data does not conclusively demonstrate that these handgun or assault weapon bans have led to reductions in gun violence, though some studies drew other conclusions,” it said. “The variation in study results reflects the fact that patterns of gun violence are influenced by many factors and the impact cannot be attributed to one factor.”
Mandated by the prime minister to “lead an examination of a full ban on handguns and assault weapons in Canada, while not impeding the lawful use of firearms by Canadians” the minister seems to have forgotten the 2015 election promise of gun legislation. Simply punting the issue to the upcoming election will definitely hurt the party amongst its core supporters, especially women.
Blair’s consultations were criticized as sloppy when pro-gun advocates admitted they were able to skew the results of a Public Safety online survey in their favour by including thousands of responses from a single computer.
François Bellemare, a Quebec-based engineer and member of the Canadian Coalition for Firearm Rights, was reported in the media back in March saying he alone submitted between 25,000 and 35,000 responses using a computer automation application called Macro Recorder.
That survey ultimately concluded by a majority of 76 per cent that there was no appetite for a ban on assault weapons in Canada. But the report was obviously bogus and distorted the real public appetite for action on gun reform in Canada.
Blair botched the consultations and now Liberals are wavering over whether to come down hard on the availability of assault weapons and handguns in our country.
The party was probably hoping to get through the election without a lot of attention focused on that issue.
But with the continual barrage of mass shootings in the United States, the issue is not likely to go away anytime soon. Almost weekly incidents of gun violence in Toronto pretty much guarantee that Liberals will not be able to dodge the question in the upcoming election.
Women and young people, those supporters whom the Liberals need to win the next election, want action.
They fear the increase in gun violence and spike in domestic hate crimes and want Justin Trudeau to follow the example of New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern. She acted immediately following the mass shootings in a Christchurch mosque to introduce a ban on military-grade semi-automatic weapons.
Canada is experiencing a hike in gun-based violent murders, from the Québec City mosque attack to the Danforth shooting of ten people, to the recent British Columbia murder spree.
The time has come for Liberals to get a spine on guns in Canada.
Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.
