OTTAWA – Bruce Hyer upheld his long-standing commitment to vote against the long gun registry Wednesday, in a closely-watched House of Commons vote that narrowly passed 153 to 151. The vote was on a Liberal motion to kill without further debate Bill C-391 – a Private Members’ Bill which would repeal registry requirements for non-restricted long guns.
“Over more than 7 years, three elections, in public forums, and on many doorsteps, I have committed to voting to end the registry of legal rifles and shotguns.” Hyer said. “Today, I upheld that commitment.”
“I say to my constituents: I will never stop listening to you.” Hyer affirmed. “Going forward, I will be working in Parliament to ensure that the cultural and economic needs of the people of Northern Ontario are respected in any future changes to our firearms laws. But if an agreement on acceptable and safe changes to firearms legislation cannot be found, I intend to vote to end the current long gun registry again in the future.”
“I have studied the issue and I believe that the separate safe storage and transport regulations, along with the Possession & Acquisition Licence – which requires testing, background checks, and licensing of all legal firearms owners – are the truly effective parts of our firearms legislation.” said Hyer. “I don’t believe current registration requirements for long guns are effective in preventing crime. The most urgent changes that need to be made are to crack down on illegal handguns, gun smuggling, and gangs.”
The vote result means that C-391 will not be debated further in Parliament or come to a final vote.