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By Nicole Reis

firearms argument

Cold Lake city council voices concerns over gun legislation

Jul 29, 2020 | 8:00 PM

Cold Lake’s city council has approached a number of municipalities across Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan (including Meadow Lake), through a letter addressed to the federal Minister of Public Safety, Bill Blair to voice concerns over recent changes to gun legislation.

In May, Prime Minster Justin Trudeau closed the market for military-grade, assault-style weapons in Canada and banned 1,500 models and variants of such firearms by way of regulations.

Cold Lake Mayor Craig Copeland said approaching municipalities who don’t agree with the ban is the only way to make federal politicians change their mind.

“I think [the federal government] really needs to step back and talk to the people who own guns themselves. They’re following the rules and it’s unfortunate there are a few individuals who circumvent the law and bring in illegal weapons and perform violent crimes,” Copeland told meadowlakeNOW. “I don’t think people who are following the law should be penalized by these individuals who have stepped outside of the law and taken matters into their own hands.”

The letter issued by Cold Lake council on July 7 states the federal government’s gun ban will be an expensive exercise that will only serve to take law abiding people’s property while doing nothing to reduce crime.

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“We see forecasts of hundreds of millions of federal dollars to be spent to buy guns back from people,” the letter reads. “As these people who went through the necessary education, background checks to purchase them, it seems like a poorly thought out plan, especially if its aim is to reduce crime.”

(submitted photo/ City of Meadow Lake council agenda, July 27)

Mayor Copeland explains lawful gun ownership is important for recreational use, hunting and private collection. During the pandemic, he said gun ranges have been growing in popularity and feels lawful gun owners have been penalized by owning legal firearms through illegal gun smugglers and gang violence.

Copeland said other major cities are considering looking at the legislation but whether or not they bring it to council remains to be seen. The matter will return to council in August with the objective of bringing it forward for the Federated Canadian Municipalities conference in 2021.

Kirk Soroka, council member with the City of Cold Lake and a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the Canadian Forces, initially brought the motion forward to council. He said political rhetoric about assault-style gun ownership inflamed the uninformed.

“My view is that the federal government’s approach is misguided and focusing on the wrong demographic of people. The law abiding citizens aren’t the problem,” Soroka said. “The problem is the illegal gun smugglers, gangs and the lack of cooperation between existing key forces – that’s where I believe a majority of that funding should go.”

He said many hunting rifles function in the same way [as an assault-style rifle] and the federal government’s legislation broadly includes hunters and sport shooters.

“It’s a complete broad brush approach by Minister Blair to disarm the Canadian public,” he said. “There may be some people who do not know how people out west live. We’re not city folk and we like to be out in the wild and you can’t disarm us, it will create a bigger public safety problem, I think.”

Soroka says he would like to see the federal funding used to buy back legally obtained property from law abiding citizens to be allocated toward tackling illegal smugglers across borders, gang violence and enabling police forces to work together to stop both.

“I would rather see $600 million go towards police forces and have them stop that type of lawlessness and allow law abiding gun owners to continue to practice this sport,” he said.

The letter was addressed to Meadow Lake’s mayor and was received for information by council. No motion was brought forward nor was there any conversation on the matter during this week’s meeting.

The mayor of both Prince Albert and North Battleford were contacted for comment but they did not immediately respond to requests.

The federal government placed a ban on assault-style weapons after multiple shootings in Nova Scotia on April 18 and 19.

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nicole.reis@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @nicolereis7722