The Canadian government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wants to introduce a complete ban on the purchase, sale and import of handguns. Trudeau announced this on Monday in the Canadian capital Ottawa.
The proposed move, which should ‘freeze’ handgun possession at the national level, is part of a package of firearms control measures. The Trudeau government also wants to limit the capacity of warehouses.
The package, which was shelved last fall ahead of parliamentary elections, follows a deadly shooting in neighboring the United States that killed 19 schoolchildren and two adults last week at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
According to Trudeau, gun violence is on the rise, including in Canada. “We only have to look south of the border to see that if we don’t take firm and swift action, it will get worse and harder to fight,” he said.
Less gun violence than the US
Canada experiences significantly less gun violence per capita than the US, but more than other Western countries. For example, the number of murders involving firearms in the US is five times higher than in Canada. But the Canadian figure is five times that of Australia.
Also read: Canada bans assault rifles
According to Bill Blair, Canada’s Minister of Emergency Preparedness, Canada differs from its neighbor when it comes to firearms. “In Canada, firearms ownership is a privilege, not a right,” he said.
Two years ago, the Canadian government banned about 1,500 models of assault rifles, such as the AR-15, after a shooting in the eastern province of Nova Scotia that killed 22 people.
If the parliament adopts the measures, they should come into effect this autumn. Although Trudeau rules with a parliamentary minority, he can count on support for firearms control from MPs from the Social Democratic NDP and the separatist Bloc Québécois.