“We are limiting the number of weapons in this country,” Trudeau said.
Justin Trudeau has announced new gun restrictions in Canada. (AP)
“It will be illegal to buy, sell, transfer or import weapons anywhere in Canada,” the prime minister said.
Canada already plans to ban 1,500 types of military-style firearms and offer a mandatory repurchase program that will begin later this year. It has already expanded the background checks.
Trudeau has long had plans to enact tougher gun laws, but the introduction of the new measure comes after mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas, and Buffalo, New York, this month.
Bill Blair, Minister of Emergency Preparedness, said Canada is very different from the United States.
“In Canada, gun ownership is a privilege, not a right,” Blair said.
“This is a principle that sets us apart from many other countries in the world, especially from our colleagues and friends in the South.
“In Canada, weapons are only intended for use in hunting and sports.”
Canada has had far fewer mass shootings than the U.S., in part because of the lack of easy access to weapons, although the U.S. population is also much larger than that of Canada.
Weapons ownership is high in Canada, but many firearms are restricted. (AP)
Blair noted that smuggling weapons are often introduced from the United States, noting that it has one of the largest arsenals of small arms in the world.
The government plans to fight smuggling and arms trafficking by increasing criminal sanctions, providing more tools to investigate gun crimes and strengthening border measures.
Trudeau said the increase in funding has already helped border officials double the number of contraband weapons confiscated at the U.S. border.
The government also said the bill would also allow gun licenses to be withdrawn from people involved in acts of domestic violence or criminal harassment, such as harassment.
The bill would create a new “red flag” law that would allow courts to require people who consider themselves dangerous to themselves or others to hand over their firearms to the police.
The government said the measure would protect the safety of people requesting the process, often women at risk of domestic abuse, by protecting their identities.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced new restrictions on the ownership of handguns. (AP)
The government said it would require rifle loaders to be permanently altered so that they could never contain more than five rounds and would ban the sale and transfer of high-capacity magazines under the Penal Code.
“Canada can teach us many things,” tweeted Bruce Heyman, a former U.S. ambassador to Canada under the Obama administration.
Trudeau said his government recognizes that the vast majority of Canadians who possess weapons are responsible, but the level of armed violence is unacceptable.
“This is a concrete and real national measure to go a long way toward the safety of Canadians,” Trudeau said.
The new measures will be passed in the Canadian Parliament, as the ruling Liberals and the left-wing opposition New Democrats have enough votes.
Pierre Poilievre, who is running for leader of the Conservative Party, said law-abiding gun owners should be respected and dangerous criminals should be jailed.
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