M.D. to talk with local clubs on feds gun ban

The M.D. of Bonnyville has followed Cold Lake’s example in voicing opposition to the federal government’s firearms ban.

In the wake of the city voting to oppose the federal government’s legislation including its proposed buy-back program, the M.D. will gauge how the Bonnyville Shooting Sports Association and the Cold Lake Fish and Game Association feel about the ban.

“We thought rather than just doing a blanket statement on on the guns, I know that we have a ton of avid gun owners–I’ve got a few myself–but we want to make sure that we get their side of the story clear before we make response to the federal government,” said Reeve Greg Sawchuk on The Morning After.

“We think that they’ve not looked at the real issue and tried to answer that problem. They came up with something that targets legal gun owners when they should have been going after the hardened criminals that are using illegal guns.”

The federal government’s handling of the ban has fuelled debate on both sides of the political spectrum since it was first unveiled, with issues ranging from the long-term effects the ban could present, the potential cost of the buy-back program for taxpayers, and the time between the killings in Nova Scotia–which prompted the ban–and the date the ban was put into effect.

The City of Cold Lake formally voiced its opposition to the Liberal government’s ban on over 1000 long guns and handguns in June of this year after the issue was brought forward by councillor Kirk Soroka during a regular city meeting.

They sent their letter to communities across western Canada to gauge support.

“When we put out our press release on the issue, it became our most viewed social media post. It was getting shared across Canada and the whole of North America,” said mayor Craig Copeland, also on The Morning After.

“Since then we’ve had municipalities in Alberta and Saskatchewan jump on board and contact us to ask what they can do, and what we’ve been telling them is to take their motions, get in touch with their MPs, the Minister, and tell  Prime Minister Trudeau to stop with this legislation.”

Councillors voted unanimously to oppose the legislation with the underlying sentiment that the legislation as it stands at present would not accomplish its goal of curtailing gun violence in Canada.

City council will return to the issue at a later date to discuss opportunities in bringing it forward at the Federal Canadian Municipalities committee.

Copeland thanked Soroka for his diligence in pursuing the issue and for helping to bring his fellow councillors together to achieve a unified voice going forward.