Canadian gun registry
Encyclopedia
The Canadian Firearms Registry is part of the Firearms Act and is managed by the Canadian Firearms Program of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
(RCMP). It requires the registration of all gun
s in Canada
. It was introduced by the Liberal
government of Prime Minister
Jean Chrétien
and implemented by successive Justice Ministers
Allan Rock
and Anne McLellan
. This was an effort to reduce crime by making every gun traceable. The net annual operating cost of the program is reported to be $66.4 million for the 2010-2011 fiscal year.
Any person wishing to obtain a firearm must first acquire a Possession and Acquisition Licence
(PAL). The PAL carries a fee of $60 for non-restricted, $80 for restricted, and is renewable every five years. Expiry dates are set on the holder's birthday following the fifth anniversary of the initial issue of the licence.
After a change in government in 2006
, the current Conservative
Federal Government announced amnesty to all rifle and shotgun owners facing prosecution for failing to register their firearms, with an extended amnesty currently set to expire on May 16, 2013. Since its introduction in 2001 and continuing on to the present, the long-gun registry remains a contentious issue
in Canadian politics.
On October 25, 2011, the government introduced legislation to scrap the Canadian Firearms Registry.
to existing, licensed collectors of full-automatic weapons and theatrical users) since 1977. A Firearms Acquisition Certificate (FAC) was required to purchase any firearm since its implementation in 1977, although additional restrictions applied for handguns (restricted - 1934) and fully automatic firearms (prohibited -1977). To obtain an FAC, no training was required until the Canadian Firearms Safety Course and Test program (non-restricted, restricted, or combined courses/tests) was created as a prerequisite in bill C-17 in 1991. This formal training, once common in families and even schools, has been credited with the marked reduction of accidents involving the improper handling of firearms. Under bill C-17 (1991), and subsequent legislation and/or orders in council, short-barreled handgun
s and those firing .25 ACP
and .32 ACP
ammunition, and all handguns with a barrel length under 105mm (~4.1"), with the exception of certain guns typically used in shooting competitions, were added to the list of prohibited firearms. In addition, a large reclassification of firearms was made to place many firearms with certain cosmetic and functional characteristics into the category and registration of 'restricted' or 'prohibited' firearms. Some classes of these firearms have also been subject to grandfathering provisions of the law to owners and collectors, including some limited allowances of willing/gifting certain prohibited firearms to a family member to preserve them for historic value as pre-1945 collectors pieces.
in 1995. The Canadian Firearms Centre was established in 1996 to oversee the administration of its measures.
The registration portion of the Firearms Act was implemented in 2001 and the deadline for gun owners to register their non-restricted firearms was January 1, 2003. Seventy-five per cent of all gun owners meet the deadline for registering their non-restricted firearms, 5.8 million firearms in total are registered by that date.
, Ontario
, Nova Scotia
, New Brunswick
and Newfoundland and Labrador
also attacked the bill arguing it exceeded the federal government's mandate and arguing that it was too expensive, however the Supreme Court
ruled in favour of the registry in Reference re Firearms Act
.
The Conservative Party of Canada
campaigned for many years to repeal portions of the registry and still claims to remain committed to scrapping the registry.
s were reported.
In early 2000, the Canadian Firearms Program releases a report that shows implementation costs are rising. Major backlogs in registration, largely as a result of firearm owners waiting until the last minute to apply, general increase in costs, fee waivers for early applications, and high error rates in applications submitted by firearm owners are all cited as contributing factors to the rising costs.
In December 2001, cost rose to an estimated $527 million. The Canadian Firearms Program reported that a major factor behind the rising costs was the difficulty it had keeping track of licence fees collected. This was blamed, in part, on the computer system used to process applications. The audit said that the problem could not be resolved without "massive change," including "significant investment" in the computer system.
In April 2002 the tab for implementing the registry rises to $629 million. The costs were $2 million to help police enforce legislation, A minimum of $60 million for public-relations programs, including television commercials ($18 million of which went to ad agency GroupAction
, which also received millions in sponsorship scandal contracts), $227 million in computer costs including complicated application forms that slow processing times, and $332 million for other programming costs, including money to pay staff to process the forms.
In December 2002, the Auditor-General of Canada, Sheila Fraser
, reported that the project was running vastly above initial cost estimates. The report shows that the implementation of the firearms registry program by the Department of Justice
has had significant strategic and management problems throughout. Taxpayers were originally expected to pay only $2 million of the budget while registration fees would cover the rest. In 1995, the Department of Justice reported to Parliament that the system would cost $119 million to implement, and that the income generated from licensing fees would be $117 million. This gives a net cost of $2 million. At the time of the 2002 audit, the revised estimates from the Department of Justice were that the cost of the program would be more than $1 billion by 2004/05 and that the income from licence fees in the same period would be $140 million.
In February 2004, documents obtained by Zone Libre of Télévision de Radio-Canada
suggest that the gun registry has cost around $2 billion so far.
In May 2006, the Auditor-General of Canada, Sheila Fraser, reported that the former Liberal government twice misinformed Parliament about tens of millions of dollars of overspending at the Canada Firearms Centre. Fraser said the planned computerized gun registry system was three years overdue and so far had cost $90 million, three times more than expected.
consultant over a $380,000 contract that was awarded to lobby the federal government for funds for the ailing firearms registry. The five-month contract was awarded by the Justice Department in March 2003 to lobby the federal Solicitor General, Treasury Board and Privy Council, according to a detailed lobbyist report. No formal probe by the RCMP resulted. Bernardo asked rhetorically, "[isn't it] inappropriate for the Federal Government to hire a private lobbyist with taxpayers' dollars to lobby itself?"
In a Canada Firearms Centre (CAFC) survey, 74% of general duty police officers stated that the registry "query
results have proven beneficial during major operations.".
However, the Auditor General
's report found that the program does not collect data to analyze the effectiveness of the gun registry in meeting its stated goal of improving public safety. The report states:
Former Ontario Provincial Police
Commissioner Julian Fantino
is opposed to the gun registry, stating in a press release in 2003:
Meanwhile, Edgar MacLeod, former president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police states that "while the cost of the registry had become an embarrassment, the program works and provides a valuable service. In a typical domestic violence situation, he says, investigating police officers rely on the registry to determine if guns are present. Onboard computers in police cruisers, or a call to central dispatch, alerts [sic] officers to any firearms registered to occupants of the house."
The Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police are strongly supportive of the gun registry, claiming that getting rid of the registry will make Canada less safe, and compromise the ability of law enforcement to deal effectively with gun violence. However, support for the registry among Chiefs of Police is not unanimous. There have also been serious questions raised regarding donations made to the CACP by CGI, the corporation behind the registry. These donations were partially responsible for the resignation of ethicist Dr. John Jones from the CACP's ethics committee. Furthermore, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police has been criticized for suppressing opposition to the registry among its own law enforcement officers. These allegations have been disputed.
There is some debate as to whether frontline police officers oppose the registry. Opponents of the registry cite an online straw poll to suggest 92% regular officers believe that the registry is ineffective and should be dismantled; that poll, conducted by Cst. Randy Kuntz of the Edmonton Police Service, was open to active police members only through an online forum in a popular police related magazine where respondents were all confirmed Canadian police officers. In addition to this, Cst. Kuntz solicited input from members of police forces across Canada through various means of advertising to promote awareness of this poll. After approximately fourteen months, 2631 Canadian police officers responded to this survey, . Of the 2631 respondents, 2410 voted to scrap the registry. A newly released RCMP report shows 81% of police officers are in favour of the registry.
A survey in August 2010 revealed that 72 percent of Canadians believe the long-gun registry has done nothing to prevent crime. Organizations like the Canadian Taxpayers Federation
have circulated petitions to end the registry and have collected tens of thousands of signatures supporting the elimination of the registry.
In April 2011, a survey was conducted by the Edmonton Police Association. Its members voted 81 percent in favour of scrapping the long-gun registry.
As the registration of long guns in the overall Canadian Firearms Registry only applies to common sporting rifles and shotguns, the potential repealing of such registration requirements would only affect 'non-restricted' classified firearms. All firearms classified as 'restricted' or 'prohibited' by law and orders in council in 1934, 1977, 1991, 1996, and subsequently would remain registered and unchanged. A Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL), and the prerequisite training, is mandatory to purchase or possess any firearm. Hunter education programs are a requirement of all hunters in Canada.
In a 2001 Access to Information Request, the RCMP explained that they do not record statistics on which applications are targeted by hackers. As a result, they do not know how many times the Canadian Firearms Program (CFP) database has been breached. Chief Superintendent David Gork, Departmental Security Officer is quoted as saying, “CPIC is but one of many applications that are protected on the NPSN (National Police Service Network) and attacks on the network cannot be broken down as to which application is the intent of the attack. In general, attacks are to gain access through the protective measures, and from there to ‘look around’ for opportunities as to where the attacker ‘can go’. Therefore there are no stats that are collected that would indicate where any attacks are directed with the NPSN.”
In his final response to the Access to Information request, the Information Commissioner concluded, “During the course of our investigation, my investigator met with officials from the RCMP and was provided with a detailed and comprehensive explanation regarding the department’s security systems. They confirmed that CPIC is one of many applications protected within the National Police Service Network and there is no way of determining what application is being targeted, if an unauthorized access is being attempted.”
John Hicks, an Orillia-area computer consultant, and webmaster for the Canada Firearms Centre
, has said that anyone with a home computer could have easily accessed names, addresses and detailed shopping lists (including make, model and serial number) of registered guns belonging to licenced firearms owners. Hicks told the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (OFAH) that "During my tenure as the CFC webmaster I duly informed management that the website that interfaced to the firearms registry was flawed. It took some $15 million to develop and I broke inside into it within 30 minutes."
The Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters questioned the security of the gun registry after a home invasion that seemed to target a licenced gun collector. The OFAH argues that, in the wrong hands, a database detailing the whereabouts of every legally-owned firearm in Canada is a potential shopping list for criminals.
In response to these privacy and security claims, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, the Canadian Police Association, and the Canadian Association of Police Boards released a joint statement stating that,"The CFP's national database has never been breached by hackers. Information is safe and secure."
2003 - 1,813;
2004 - 2,087;
2005 - 4,091;
2006 - 6,591;
2007 - 6,973;
2008 - 9,408;
2009 - 11,086;
2010 - 14,012
As of June 2010, the CFRO is reportedly accessed 14,012 times per day. Only 530 (3.7%) of those "hits" are specific to firearms registration (licence number, serial number and certificate number). The remaining 13,482 (96.3%) are automatically generated every time an address is checked or a licence plate is verified.
The specific registry hits are not limited to use by police officers and also include legal sales of firearms. Every time a firearm is legally purchased, 3 hits are generated on the CFRO — one for the buyer, one for the seller, and one for the firearm.
While there is no reliable information to suggest how many times per day police officers intentionally access the firearms registry, the automatic inclusion of this information in vehicle and address reports is considered by many to be a valuable policing tool.
minority government that was elected in both 2006
and 2008
had a platform calling for a repeal of portions of the registry, but did not successfully alter legislation on the registry. However, the government brought forward regulatory changes to bring in an amnesty for rifle and shotgun owners facing prosecution for failing to register their firearms. The government extended this one-year amnesty four times, with the most recent amnesty having expired on May 16, 2011.
In 2009, the Conservative government supported a Private Member's Bill (C-391) which proposed to repeal the portion of the requirement requiring the registration of non-restricted firearms, but would have continued the registration requirement for guns classified as restricted. Despite every other party leader in the House of Commons opposing the bill, Bill C-391 passed second reading in the House of Commons in November 2009 by a vote of 164 to 137 due to 8 Liberal
MPs, 12 New Democrats
and one independent
voting with the minority Conservative government.
In response to Liberal MPs breaking party ranks to support Bill C-391, Liberal Opposition Leader Michael Ignatieff
announced on April 19, 2010 that Liberal MPs would be whipped
to vote against C-391 and other proposals by the Conservative government to kill the long-gun portion of the registry, with the condition that the party will instead support a reduction in the severity of penalties for those who fail to successfully register. The NDP
did not enforce a party stance on parliamentary votes regarding the registry in relation to Bill C-391, as it is a Private Member's Bill.
A third reading on September 22, 2010 failed to pass by a narrow margin (153 to 151). Six NDP MPs sided with the Conservative caucus in favour of the bill, with their remaining MPs joining the Liberal Party and Bloc Québecois
in opposing it.
The Conservatives won a majority in the 2011 election; during the campaign, party leader Stephen Harper
reiterated his party's support for eliminating registration of non-restricted long guns.
On October 25, 2011, the government introduced legislation to scrap the Canadian Firearms Registry. The bill would repeal the requirement to register non-restricted firearms (long-guns), provide for the destruction of all records pertaining to the registration of long-guns currently contained in the Canadian Firearms Registry and under the control of the chief firearms officers; and maintain controls over restricted and prohibited firearms The bill passed second reading in the House of Commons (156 to 123).
and other guns rights groups in the United States have used the Canadian registry as an example of the potential failure such a system would be if implemented in the United States which has far more firearms in private circulation than Canada does.
The Violence Policy Center
has argued against such a system being implemented in the United States on the grounds that it would not reduce gun violence
in America.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
(RCMP). It requires the registration of all gun
Gun
A gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...
s in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It was introduced by the Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
government of Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Jean Chrétien
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....
and implemented by successive Justice Ministers
Minister of Justice (Canada)
The Minister of Justice is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for the Department of Justice and is also Attorney General of Canada .This cabinet position is usually reserved for someone with formal legal training...
Allan Rock
Allan Rock
Allan Michael Rock, PC is a lawyer, former Canadian politician, diplomat and now the President of University of Ottawa. He was Canada's ambassador to the United Nations and had previously served in the Cabinet of Jean Chrétien, most notably as Justice Minister and Health Minister .Rock was...
and Anne McLellan
Anne McLellan
|-...
. This was an effort to reduce crime by making every gun traceable. The net annual operating cost of the program is reported to be $66.4 million for the 2010-2011 fiscal year.
Any person wishing to obtain a firearm must first acquire a Possession and Acquisition Licence
Possession and Acquisition Licence
A Possession and Acquisition Licence is a licence that allows individuals in Canada to possess and acquire firearms as well as ammunition. Licences are typically valid for five years and must be renewed prior to expiry to maintain all classes. Once licensed, an individual can apply for a firearm...
(PAL). The PAL carries a fee of $60 for non-restricted, $80 for restricted, and is renewable every five years. Expiry dates are set on the holder's birthday following the fifth anniversary of the initial issue of the licence.
After a change in government in 2006
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...
, the current Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
Federal Government announced amnesty to all rifle and shotgun owners facing prosecution for failing to register their firearms, with an extended amnesty currently set to expire on May 16, 2013. Since its introduction in 2001 and continuing on to the present, the long-gun registry remains a contentious issue
Gun politics in Canada
Gun politics in Canada is largely polarized between two groups with opposing views. One group includes those who object to the registration of personal firearms...
in Canadian politics.
Politics of Canada
The politics of Canada function within a framework of parliamentary democracy and a federal system of parliamentary government with strong democratic traditions. Canada is a constitutional monarchy, in which the Monarch is head of state...
On October 25, 2011, the government introduced legislation to scrap the Canadian Firearms Registry.
History
Canada had a gun registry during the Second World War, when all people were compelled to register their firearms out of fear of enemy subversion. This registry in Canada was discontinued after the war; however, all handguns (restricted) have been subject to registration since 1934. In addition, fully automatic firearms have been prohibited (with grandfathering exemptionsGrandfather clause
Grandfather clause is a legal term used to describe a situation in which an old rule continues to apply to some existing situations, while a new rule will apply to all future situations. It is often used as a verb: to grandfather means to grant such an exemption...
to existing, licensed collectors of full-automatic weapons and theatrical users) since 1977. A Firearms Acquisition Certificate (FAC) was required to purchase any firearm since its implementation in 1977, although additional restrictions applied for handguns (restricted - 1934) and fully automatic firearms (prohibited -1977). To obtain an FAC, no training was required until the Canadian Firearms Safety Course and Test program (non-restricted, restricted, or combined courses/tests) was created as a prerequisite in bill C-17 in 1991. This formal training, once common in families and even schools, has been credited with the marked reduction of accidents involving the improper handling of firearms. Under bill C-17 (1991), and subsequent legislation and/or orders in council, short-barreled handgun
Handgun
A handgun is a firearm designed to be held and operated by one hand. This characteristic differentiates handguns as a general class of firearms from long guns such as rifles and shotguns ....
s and those firing .25 ACP
.25 ACP
The .25 ACP centerfire pistol cartridge is a semi-rimmed, straight-walled pistol cartridge introduced by John Browning in 1905 alongside the Fabrique Nationale model 1905 pistol...
and .32 ACP
.32 ACP
.32 ACP , also known as the .32 Automatic is a pistol cartridge. It is a semi-rimmed, straight-walled cartridge developed by firearms designer John Browning, initially for use in the FN M1900 semi-automatic pistol...
ammunition, and all handguns with a barrel length under 105mm (~4.1"), with the exception of certain guns typically used in shooting competitions, were added to the list of prohibited firearms. In addition, a large reclassification of firearms was made to place many firearms with certain cosmetic and functional characteristics into the category and registration of 'restricted' or 'prohibited' firearms. Some classes of these firearms have also been subject to grandfathering provisions of the law to owners and collectors, including some limited allowances of willing/gifting certain prohibited firearms to a family member to preserve them for historic value as pre-1945 collectors pieces.
Bill C-68
The Firearms Act was created by Bill C-68, An Act Respecting Firearms and Other Weapons, which was introduced in 1993, and aimed at the licensing of all gun owners and registration of all firearms. The bill also classified replica firearms as prohibited devices, with those already owned being grandfathered. It was passed by Parliament and given Royal AssentRoyal Assent
The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...
in 1995. The Canadian Firearms Centre was established in 1996 to oversee the administration of its measures.
The registration portion of the Firearms Act was implemented in 2001 and the deadline for gun owners to register their non-restricted firearms was January 1, 2003. Seventy-five per cent of all gun owners meet the deadline for registering their non-restricted firearms, 5.8 million firearms in total are registered by that date.
Initial opposition
Political opposition to the registry, particularly outside of Canada's major cities, was immediate. The provincial governments of AlbertaAlberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
and Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
also attacked the bill arguing it exceeded the federal government's mandate and arguing that it was too expensive, however the Supreme Court
Supreme Court of Canada
The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeals in the Canadian justice system. The court grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts, and its decisions...
ruled in favour of the registry in Reference re Firearms Act
Reference re Firearms Act
Reference re Firearms Act, [2000] 1 S.C.R. 783, 2000 SCC 31, is a leading constitutional decision of the Supreme Court of Canada on the division of powers regarding firearms legislation and the Canadian Firearms Registry...
.
The Conservative Party of Canada
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
campaigned for many years to repeal portions of the registry and still claims to remain committed to scrapping the registry.
Cost overruns
The registry again became a political issue in the early 2000s when massive cost overrunCost overrun
A cost overrun, also known as a cost increase or budget overrun, is an unexpected cost incurred in excess of a budgeted amount due to an under-estimation of the actual cost during budgeting...
s were reported.
In early 2000, the Canadian Firearms Program releases a report that shows implementation costs are rising. Major backlogs in registration, largely as a result of firearm owners waiting until the last minute to apply, general increase in costs, fee waivers for early applications, and high error rates in applications submitted by firearm owners are all cited as contributing factors to the rising costs.
In December 2001, cost rose to an estimated $527 million. The Canadian Firearms Program reported that a major factor behind the rising costs was the difficulty it had keeping track of licence fees collected. This was blamed, in part, on the computer system used to process applications. The audit said that the problem could not be resolved without "massive change," including "significant investment" in the computer system.
In April 2002 the tab for implementing the registry rises to $629 million. The costs were $2 million to help police enforce legislation, A minimum of $60 million for public-relations programs, including television commercials ($18 million of which went to ad agency GroupAction
Groupaction
Groupaction Inc. is a Canadian advertising agency at the centre of the 2004 Canadian sponsorship scandal. It was incorporated in 1983 as Groupaction Marketing Inc. and received its first federal advertising contract in 1994 with the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission ....
, which also received millions in sponsorship scandal contracts), $227 million in computer costs including complicated application forms that slow processing times, and $332 million for other programming costs, including money to pay staff to process the forms.
In December 2002, the Auditor-General of Canada, Sheila Fraser
Sheila Fraser
Sheila Fraser served as Auditor General of Canada from 2001 to 2011.Ms. Fraser was born in Dundee, Quebec, Canada. She earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree from McGill University in 1972. She then became a chartered accountant in 1974 and FCA in 1994...
, reported that the project was running vastly above initial cost estimates. The report shows that the implementation of the firearms registry program by the Department of Justice
Department of Justice (Canada)
The purpose of the Department of Justice is to ensure that the Canadian justice system is fair, accessible and efficient. The Department also represents the Canadian government in legal matters...
has had significant strategic and management problems throughout. Taxpayers were originally expected to pay only $2 million of the budget while registration fees would cover the rest. In 1995, the Department of Justice reported to Parliament that the system would cost $119 million to implement, and that the income generated from licensing fees would be $117 million. This gives a net cost of $2 million. At the time of the 2002 audit, the revised estimates from the Department of Justice were that the cost of the program would be more than $1 billion by 2004/05 and that the income from licence fees in the same period would be $140 million.
In February 2004, documents obtained by Zone Libre of Télévision de Radio-Canada
Télévision de Radio-Canada
Télévision de Radio-Canada is a Canadian French language television network. It is owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, known in French as Société Radio-Canada. Headquarters are at Maison Radio-Canada in Montreal, which is also home to the network's flagship station, CBFT-DT...
suggest that the gun registry has cost around $2 billion so far.
In May 2006, the Auditor-General of Canada, Sheila Fraser, reported that the former Liberal government twice misinformed Parliament about tens of millions of dollars of overspending at the Canada Firearms Centre. Fraser said the planned computerized gun registry system was three years overdue and so far had cost $90 million, three times more than expected.
Allegations of improper lobbying
In January 2006, Tony Bernardo, director of the 12,000-member Canadian Shooting Sports Association, asked the RCMP to probe a Liberal PartyLiberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
consultant over a $380,000 contract that was awarded to lobby the federal government for funds for the ailing firearms registry. The five-month contract was awarded by the Justice Department in March 2003 to lobby the federal Solicitor General, Treasury Board and Privy Council, according to a detailed lobbyist report. No formal probe by the RCMP resulted. Bernardo asked rhetorically, "[isn't it] inappropriate for the Federal Government to hire a private lobbyist with taxpayers' dollars to lobby itself?"
Effects on public safety
There are many conflicting views on how effective the Gun Registry is for ensuring public safety.In a Canada Firearms Centre (CAFC) survey, 74% of general duty police officers stated that the registry "query
results have proven beneficial during major operations.".
However, the Auditor General
Auditor General of Canada
The role of the Auditor General of Canada is to aid accountability by conducting independent audits of federal government operations. The Auditor General reports to the House of Commons, not to the government...
's report found that the program does not collect data to analyze the effectiveness of the gun registry in meeting its stated goal of improving public safety. The report states:
The performance report focuses on activities such as issuing licences and registering firearms. The Centre does not show how these activities help minimize risks to public safety with evidence-based outcomes such as reduced deaths, injuries and threats from firearms.
Former Ontario Provincial Police
Ontario Provincial Police
The Ontario Provincial Police is the Provincial Police service for the province of Ontario, Canada.-Overview:The OPP is the the largest deployed police force in Ontario, and the second largest in Canada. The service is responsible for providing policing services throughout the province in areas...
Commissioner Julian Fantino
Julian Fantino
Julian Fantino is a retired police official and the elected Member of the Parliament of Canada for the riding of Vaughan following a November 29, 2010 by-election...
is opposed to the gun registry, stating in a press release in 2003:
We have an ongoing gun crisis including firearms-related homicides lately in Toronto, and a law registering firearms has neither deterred these crimes nor helped us solve any of them. None of the guns we know to have been used were registered, although we believe that more than half of them were smuggled into Canada from the United States. The firearms registry is long on philosophy and short on practical results considering the money could be more effectively used for security against terrorism as well as a host of other public safety initiatives."
Meanwhile, Edgar MacLeod, former president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police states that "while the cost of the registry had become an embarrassment, the program works and provides a valuable service. In a typical domestic violence situation, he says, investigating police officers rely on the registry to determine if guns are present. Onboard computers in police cruisers, or a call to central dispatch, alerts [sic] officers to any firearms registered to occupants of the house."
The Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police are strongly supportive of the gun registry, claiming that getting rid of the registry will make Canada less safe, and compromise the ability of law enforcement to deal effectively with gun violence. However, support for the registry among Chiefs of Police is not unanimous. There have also been serious questions raised regarding donations made to the CACP by CGI, the corporation behind the registry. These donations were partially responsible for the resignation of ethicist Dr. John Jones from the CACP's ethics committee. Furthermore, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police has been criticized for suppressing opposition to the registry among its own law enforcement officers. These allegations have been disputed.
There is some debate as to whether frontline police officers oppose the registry. Opponents of the registry cite an online straw poll to suggest 92% regular officers believe that the registry is ineffective and should be dismantled; that poll, conducted by Cst. Randy Kuntz of the Edmonton Police Service, was open to active police members only through an online forum in a popular police related magazine where respondents were all confirmed Canadian police officers. In addition to this, Cst. Kuntz solicited input from members of police forces across Canada through various means of advertising to promote awareness of this poll. After approximately fourteen months, 2631 Canadian police officers responded to this survey, . Of the 2631 respondents, 2410 voted to scrap the registry. A newly released RCMP report shows 81% of police officers are in favour of the registry.
A survey in August 2010 revealed that 72 percent of Canadians believe the long-gun registry has done nothing to prevent crime. Organizations like the Canadian Taxpayers Federation
Canadian Taxpayers Federation
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is a Canadian federally incorporated, non-profit organization and taxpayers union that claims to have over 70,000 supporters across Canada. The organization advocates lower taxes, and a reduction of what it considers to be waste in government...
have circulated petitions to end the registry and have collected tens of thousands of signatures supporting the elimination of the registry.
In April 2011, a survey was conducted by the Edmonton Police Association. Its members voted 81 percent in favour of scrapping the long-gun registry.
As the registration of long guns in the overall Canadian Firearms Registry only applies to common sporting rifles and shotguns, the potential repealing of such registration requirements would only affect 'non-restricted' classified firearms. All firearms classified as 'restricted' or 'prohibited' by law and orders in council in 1934, 1977, 1991, 1996, and subsequently would remain registered and unchanged. A Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL), and the prerequisite training, is mandatory to purchase or possess any firearm. Hunter education programs are a requirement of all hunters in Canada.
Privacy and security issues
The information contained in the firearms registry is available to police through the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC). This database is one of many applications which are protected under the National Police Service Network (NPSN).In a 2001 Access to Information Request, the RCMP explained that they do not record statistics on which applications are targeted by hackers. As a result, they do not know how many times the Canadian Firearms Program (CFP) database has been breached. Chief Superintendent David Gork, Departmental Security Officer is quoted as saying, “CPIC is but one of many applications that are protected on the NPSN (National Police Service Network) and attacks on the network cannot be broken down as to which application is the intent of the attack. In general, attacks are to gain access through the protective measures, and from there to ‘look around’ for opportunities as to where the attacker ‘can go’. Therefore there are no stats that are collected that would indicate where any attacks are directed with the NPSN.”
In his final response to the Access to Information request, the Information Commissioner concluded, “During the course of our investigation, my investigator met with officials from the RCMP and was provided with a detailed and comprehensive explanation regarding the department’s security systems. They confirmed that CPIC is one of many applications protected within the National Police Service Network and there is no way of determining what application is being targeted, if an unauthorized access is being attempted.”
John Hicks, an Orillia-area computer consultant, and webmaster for the Canada Firearms Centre
Canada Firearms Centre
Canadian Firearms Program , formerly Canada Firearms Centre is a Canadian government program within the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Policing Support Services, responsible for licensing and regulating firearms in Canada....
, has said that anyone with a home computer could have easily accessed names, addresses and detailed shopping lists (including make, model and serial number) of registered guns belonging to licenced firearms owners. Hicks told the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (OFAH) that "During my tenure as the CFC webmaster I duly informed management that the website that interfaced to the firearms registry was flawed. It took some $15 million to develop and I broke inside into it within 30 minutes."
The Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters questioned the security of the gun registry after a home invasion that seemed to target a licenced gun collector. The OFAH argues that, in the wrong hands, a database detailing the whereabouts of every legally-owned firearm in Canada is a potential shopping list for criminals.
In response to these privacy and security claims, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, the Canadian Police Association, and the Canadian Association of Police Boards released a joint statement stating that,"The CFP's national database has never been breached by hackers. Information is safe and secure."
Usage
The RCMP Canadian Firearms Program produces a quarterly report called Facts and Figures. The information most often quoted in the media is the total number of queries, in the section entitled Average Daily Queries to the CFRO (Canadian Firearms Registry On-line). This number is what is commonly used to determine how often the registry is accessed by police officers. Changes to the system and the level of automation have resulted in the total number of queries increasing dramatically since the RCMP began tracking these numbers in 2003.2003 - 1,813;
2004 - 2,087;
2005 - 4,091;
2006 - 6,591;
2007 - 6,973;
2008 - 9,408;
2009 - 11,086;
2010 - 14,012
As of June 2010, the CFRO is reportedly accessed 14,012 times per day. Only 530 (3.7%) of those "hits" are specific to firearms registration (licence number, serial number and certificate number). The remaining 13,482 (96.3%) are automatically generated every time an address is checked or a licence plate is verified.
The specific registry hits are not limited to use by police officers and also include legal sales of firearms. Every time a firearm is legally purchased, 3 hits are generated on the CFRO — one for the buyer, one for the seller, and one for the firearm.
While there is no reliable information to suggest how many times per day police officers intentionally access the firearms registry, the automatic inclusion of this information in vehicle and address reports is considered by many to be a valuable policing tool.
Current status
The ConservativeConservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
minority government that was elected in both 2006
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...
and 2008
Canadian federal election, 2008
The 2008 Canadian federal election was held on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 40th Canadian Parliament after the previous parliament had been dissolved by the Governor General on September 7, 2008...
had a platform calling for a repeal of portions of the registry, but did not successfully alter legislation on the registry. However, the government brought forward regulatory changes to bring in an amnesty for rifle and shotgun owners facing prosecution for failing to register their firearms. The government extended this one-year amnesty four times, with the most recent amnesty having expired on May 16, 2011.
In 2009, the Conservative government supported a Private Member's Bill (C-391) which proposed to repeal the portion of the requirement requiring the registration of non-restricted firearms, but would have continued the registration requirement for guns classified as restricted. Despite every other party leader in the House of Commons opposing the bill, Bill C-391 passed second reading in the House of Commons in November 2009 by a vote of 164 to 137 due to 8 Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
MPs, 12 New Democrats
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
and one independent
André Arthur
André Arthur is a Canadian radio host and politician. He was the independent Member of Parliament for the riding of Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier from 2006 to 2011...
voting with the minority Conservative government.
In response to Liberal MPs breaking party ranks to support Bill C-391, Liberal Opposition Leader Michael Ignatieff
Michael Ignatieff
Michael Grant Ignatieff is a Canadian author, academic and former politician. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition from 2008 until 2011...
announced on April 19, 2010 that Liberal MPs would be whipped
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
to vote against C-391 and other proposals by the Conservative government to kill the long-gun portion of the registry, with the condition that the party will instead support a reduction in the severity of penalties for those who fail to successfully register. The NDP
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
did not enforce a party stance on parliamentary votes regarding the registry in relation to Bill C-391, as it is a Private Member's Bill.
A third reading on September 22, 2010 failed to pass by a narrow margin (153 to 151). Six NDP MPs sided with the Conservative caucus in favour of the bill, with their remaining MPs joining the Liberal Party and Bloc Québecois
Bloc Québécois
The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative...
in opposing it.
The Conservatives won a majority in the 2011 election; during the campaign, party leader Stephen Harper
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
reiterated his party's support for eliminating registration of non-restricted long guns.
On October 25, 2011, the government introduced legislation to scrap the Canadian Firearms Registry. The bill would repeal the requirement to register non-restricted firearms (long-guns), provide for the destruction of all records pertaining to the registration of long-guns currently contained in the Canadian Firearms Registry and under the control of the chief firearms officers; and maintain controls over restricted and prohibited firearms The bill passed second reading in the House of Commons (156 to 123).
Role in United States gun politics
The National Rifle AssociationNational Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
and other guns rights groups in the United States have used the Canadian registry as an example of the potential failure such a system would be if implemented in the United States which has far more firearms in private circulation than Canada does.
The Violence Policy Center
Violence Policy Center
The Violence Policy Center is a national 501 organization working to prohibit gun ownership in the United States, especially in relation to gun politics...
has argued against such a system being implemented in the United States on the grounds that it would not reduce gun violence
Gun violence
Gun violence defined literally means the use of a firearm to threaten or inflict violence or harm. Gun violence may be broadly defined as a category of violence and crime committed with the use of a firearm; it may or may not include actions ruled as self-defense, actions for law enforcement, or...
in America.
See also
- Gun politics in CanadaGun politics in CanadaGun politics in Canada is largely polarized between two groups with opposing views. One group includes those who object to the registration of personal firearms...
- Possession and Acquisition LicencePossession and Acquisition LicenceA Possession and Acquisition Licence is a licence that allows individuals in Canada to possess and acquire firearms as well as ammunition. Licences are typically valid for five years and must be renewed prior to expiry to maintain all classes. Once licensed, an individual can apply for a firearm...
- Dominion of Canada Rifle AssociationDominion of Canada Rifle AssociationThe Dominion of Canada Rifle Association ' was founded in 1868 and incorporated by an Act of Parliament 63-64 Victoria Chapter 99, assented to July 7, 1890, to promote and encourage the training of marksmanship throughout Canada.-Mission:...
External links
- Canadian Firearms Program: On-Line Services
- Canadian Firearms Program: FAQ
- Coalition for Gun Control Anti-Gun (pro-control)
- Viewpoints on guns Pro-gun (anti-control)
- JJHicks.com Security Advisory: Predictability and Vulnerability in the Canadian Firearms Centre's On-Line Services Web Site
- Law-abiding Unregistered Firearms Association
- National Firearms Association