The federal government's ban on firearms is too far-reaching, says Bob Zimmer.
In a statement issued this week, the Conservative MP for Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies contends the criteria used to determine what the ban will cover makes a range of guns meant for hunting and sport shooting illegal.
"According to the new regulations, the ban includes firearms '...characterized by the following physical attributes: a 20 mm bore or greater...and the capacity to discharge a projectile with a muzzle energy greater than 10,000 joules...'"
"Firearms legal experts have concluded this means that almost every modern 12-gauge and 10-gauge shotgun with removable chokes as well as many other hunting rifles, commonly used for duck hunting and sport-shooting, are now banned in Canada.
"These are far from the 'military style' firearms the Liberals claimed they were prohibiting. Had the Liberal government followed the parliamentary process, the inclusion of these hunting and sport-shooting firearms could have been brought to their attention well before it became the law of the land."
Public Safety Minister Bill Blair differs with Zimmer's assessment.
"The regulation introduced on May 1st does not prohibit 10- and 12-gauge shotguns. The regulation for 10- and 12 gauge is based on their standard size both under 20 mm," he said in an emailed statement.
"In accordance with acceptable firearms industry standards, the definition for bore diameter explicitly states that it is after the chamber but before the choke in shotguns. Therefore, if the measurement is taken at any other location, it is not a factor that is being considered under amendment 95 of the regulations."
Through an order in council, the federal government outlawed a wide range of rifles on May 1, saying the guns were designed for the battlefield, not hunting or sport shooting.
The ban covers some 1,500 models and variants of what the government considers assault-style firearms, meaning they cannot be legally used, sold or imported, starting immediately.
The federal government is also working to overhaul the firearms classification system.
Gun-control advocates and the Trudeau government see it as key to cementing the recent federal move to ban assault-style rifles.
Heidi Rathjen of the group PolySeSouvient welcomes the move as a temporary measure, but she says a permanent ban requires comprehensive legislative reform of the classification system spelled out in the Criminal Code.
Otherwise, a manufacturer could simply design a new rifle that circumvents the federal regulations, or a future government could repeal them with the stroke of a pen.
Bill Blair says the government plans to introduce legislation that will create a new evergreen framework for classification to ensure federal intentions can't be easily overridden.
Gun-control advocates and the Trudeau government see a coming overhaul of the firearms classification system as key to cementing the recent federal move to ban assault-style rifles.
- with files from The Canadian Press
