Still no date for Canada’s retail gun buyback as amnesty deadline nears
Global News
CSAAA president Wes Winkel says his organization has had monthly meetings with public safety officials he believes underestimated the complexity of a gun buyback.
The group the federal government called “the primary source of information for industry” in the retail-banned firearm buyback says it still does not know when the program will begin.
This comes as the amnesty on banned firearms is set to expire on Oct. 30.
“I implore the government to announce an amnesty extension as soon as possible to alleviate the stress for a lot of people that own these firearms,” Canadian Sporting Arms and Ammunition Association (CSAAA) president Wes Winkel told Global News.
“I don’t think there’s any way that, even if there is the potential to make an announcement for a date to initiate the buyback, there’s no way to get it completed, obviously, by the end of October, not with the volume of guns that are out there.”
The plan announced in April is to first run a business buyback of around 1,800 firearms banned by a May 1, 2020 order in council in the wake of the mass shooting that began in Portapique, N.S. Then, there will be a buyback for individuals who own these guns.
In a statement, Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc’s spokesperson Jean-Sébastien Comeau said the government is committed to addressing gun violence.
“In parallel with the ban on assault-style rifles that has been in place since May 2020, we are committed to instituting a buy-back program that would allow firearm owners to return their firearm for fair compensation. We will update Canadians on that work as it progresses,” Comeau wrote.
When the partnership was announced, the CSAAA said it was taking part to advocate for a fair deal for retailers and will not take part in the buyback for individuals.
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