NDP’s François Pilon worried about end of long gun registry

Police use registry
According to Gariépy, Laval’s police department has between 600 and 700 firearms at all times, and each year the department destroys from 150 to 200 guns which are obtained through confiscation or seizure during police interventions.

When answering a call for suicidal behavior or conjugal violence, police officers regularly consult the long gun registry to know if there are firearms in the residence. They will then proceed to a preventive confiscation of these weapons.

Vital tool threatened
“The adoption of C-19 will mean police officers will no longer have any means to know where they can find long guns,” says Pilon. “It is a vital tool for preserving Canadians’ safety – often women and children living in a conjugal violence context – but also to fight firearms contraband. The planned destruction of all the registry data will instantly deprive police officers of the much needed information they use to trace these firearms.”
Pilon maintains that the safety of police officers will also be greatly compromised by the loss of the firearms registry, since the police often use the information provided by the registry to plan tactical interventions. He says that by doing away with a registry of these high-powered weapons, the Conservative government is ignoring the pleas of police chiefs, crime specialists and crime victims.

Pleas ignored
Pilon says the government is also ignoring provincial leaders who want to help police forces keep the public safe. Some provinces, including Quebec, have stated that they are prepared to take over and maintain the existing gun registry information, although the Conservative government plans to destroy it.
“You have every right to feel safe in your community and wherever you go in this country,” Pilon said in a statement. “And if the Conservatives won’t make your safety a priority, New Democrats certainly will. You’ve got my strongest commitment, as your Member of Parliament.