just in fellas
Tories disarm proposed new ammo rules
By Daniel Proussalidis, Parliamentary Bureau - April 9, 2012
cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Politics/2012/04/09/19611166.htmlOTTAWA - The Conservative MP who led the fight against the long-gun registry
appears to have the backing of the prime minister in shooting down proposed
changes to ammunition storage rules that have upset hunters and other
firearms users. "They're not changing," Candice Hoeppner told Sun News
Network. "So I think law-abiding gun owners can rest assured the storage
requirements that are currently in place will continue."
The Prime Minister's Office confirmed Hoeppner is right. "Correct," Andrew
McDougall, the prime minister's director of communications, said in an
e-mail. "Our government will not make changes that unfairly target
law-abiding citizens with unnecessary or arbitrary obligations."
That seems to trump National Resources Minister Joe Oliver, whose ministry
proposed the new ammunition storage rules as part of an update of
decades-old explosives regulations. Oliver has said the rules need to be
updated "without unduly burdening gun owners."
Firearms lawyer Solomon Friedman said gun owners need clarity because the
regulations are unworkable for people who use firearms as tools - or who
live far from police and may have to defend themselves against a home
invader. "We're going to see a whole new set of traps for the unwary, which
is really what these regulations will become," Freidman said. "What this
does is it creates a whole new class of paper criminals - people who've
committed no wrong, who've actually not misused their firearm in any way,
but simply because they may have transgressed an administrative regulation
they face a criminal charge. That's unacceptable."