Abolition of registry doesn’t mean end to controls
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On Wednesday MPs voted 164-137 to abolish the controversial long-gun registry.
Bill C-391 must go to committee, then return to Parliament for a third and final vote before becoming law. If passed, it will mean an end to a program which has been a thorn in the side of legitimate hunters, farmers, skeet and target shooters, and outdoor enthusiasts for a decade.
The registry keeps records on approximately seven million legally-owned rifles and shotguns in Canada.
Although the program cost an estimated $2 billion to create, the auditor general reported in 2006 that canceling the program would only save taxpayers $3 million a year.
In 2007, Canada’s Firearms Commissioner reported that RCMP, provincial police and city police forces accessed the registry over 2.5 million times. That works out to $1.20 per police check.
On the surface, that doesn’t seem like much. And certainly it’s useful for the police to find out if there is legal firearms registered in a home before walking into a domestic violence situation, hostage taking or similar situation.
The real cost is the cost in time and money for legal gun owners, the vast majority of which use and store their guns in a safe, responsible manner.
It’s also important to remember that abolishing the long gun registry would not mean an abolition of gun control in Canada. Handguns would still be required to be registered and limited to 10-round magazines.
Semi-automatic rifles and shotguns would still be limited to five-round magazines. Gun owners would still require a license and guns would be required to be stored and used safely.
Canada would still have far more restrictive gun laws than even the least-permissive U.S. states.
Speaking of the U.S., many of the guns which end up in the hands of the gangsters who shoot up our streets are purchased there and smuggled into Canada. The long gun registry hasn’t had an impact on that, as drug dealers generally don’t register their guns.
According to Statistics Canada, since 1991 firearms have been used in approximately one-third of murders. That number has stayed fairly consistent since 1979.
Handguns were used in half of firearms murders and other illegal firearms (sawed-off shotguns, assault rifles, etc.) were used in 14 per cent. The remaining 36 of firearms-related murders involved legal long guns.
Scrapping the long gun registry may only save taxpayers $3 million a year. But that is $3 million which could be better spent trying to keep the guns used in two-thirds of firearm murders off our streets.
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