GOVERNMENT RESPONSE TO BREITKREUZ’S ORDER PAPER QUESTION Q-149

37th Parliament, 1st Session

Edited Hansard • Number 197

Monday, June 3, 2002

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns

 

Mr. Geoff Regan (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, if Question No. 149 could be made an order for return, the return would be tabled immediately.

The Speaker: Is that agreed?

Some hon. members: Agreed.

[Text]

Question No. 149--

Mr. Garry Breitkreuz:

 

With regard to the Canadian Firearms Program:

(a) what is the total amount of money spent on the program since 1995;

(b) how many employees are working in and for the program;

(c) how many police officers and police personnel are working in the program;

(d) how many employees in the program are paid for by the federal government;

(e) what is the total number of firearms registered;

(f) what is the total number of firearms still to be registered;

(g) how many firearms transfers have there been since December 1, 1998;

(h) what is the total number of valid firearms licence holders;

(i) what is the total number of gun owners that still don't have a firearms licence;

(j) what is the error rate in the firearms licencing and registration system;

(k) in what percentage of all violent crimes are firearms actually used in the commission of the offence;

(l) what percentage of all homicides are committed with handguns and prohibited firearms;

(m) what percentage of firearms homicides are committed with registered firearms;

(n) what percentage of firearms homicides are committed with firearms that should have been registered but were not;

(o) what percentage of all homicides are committed with long guns;

(p) what percentage of all robberies are committed with handguns and prohibited firearms;

(q) what percentage of all robberies are committed with long guns;

(r) how many times are firearms used by citizens for self-defence every year;

(s) how many individuals have a record in the Firearms Interest Police data base;

(t) how many people are prohibited from owning firearms;

(u) how many violations of these firearms prohibition orders have there been;

(v) how many guns have been seized from these prohibited firearms owners;

(w) how many times have these prohibited firearms owners been checked to make sure they have not acquired firearms illegally;

(x) how many people have had their firearms licences refused or revoked;

(y) how many guns have been seized from these refused and revoked licencees; and

(z) how many times have these refused and revoked licencees been checked to make sure they have not acquired firearms illegally?

 

    Return tabled.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSES TO Q-149

 

With regard to the Canadian Firearms Program:

 

(a) What is the total amount of money spent on the program since 1995?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (a) The firearms program is a national investment in public safety that is supported by the vast majority of Canadians.  Over the first seven years of operation, approximately $610 million has been invested in this program.  This includes expenditures for the last fiscal year (2001-2002), which have not yet been finalized but are estimated to be about $140 million.  Overall, this still represents less than $3 per Canadian, per year of operation.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (A): It’s strange, that seven months earlier, on November 21, 2001, Mr. Richard J. Neville, Deputy Comptroller General, Comptrollership Branch, Treasury Board of Canada appeared before the Standing Senate Committee on National Finance and stated the total spent on the Canadian Firearms Program as of that date was $689,760,000.  Mr. Neville testified: “For previous years - if you care to jot this down - before the beginning of this fiscal year, it was $541,262,000.  In the Main Estimates - that is, the Main Estimates for this year, 2001-02 - there was a planned additional $34,611,000. The amount in these Supplementary Estimates, as I have already explained, is $113,886,000. The total at this point is $689,760,000. I trust, Mr. Chairman, that answers the senator's request.”

Makes one wonder where the $79.7 million went between November 21, 2001 and March 31, 2002?  No wonder the Auditor General is now doing a financial audit of this fiscal firearms fiasco.

Now everyone can add another $113.5 million to the grand total.  On Wednesday, April 24, 2002, the government answered Garry Breitkreuz's Order Paper Question Q-131: Mr. Paul Harold Macklin (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Lib.): (a) ‘The Canadian Firearms Centre’s, CFC, proposed budget allocation for fiscal year 2002-03 is $113.5 million.” [Hansard Page 10773]  And, please note that the Justice Department has never yet met an expenditure forecast for the firearms program.  Remember when Justice Minister Allan Rock promised it would only cost $85 million to implement?

 

Finally, I believe Canadian taxpayers would rather see “$3 per Canadian per year of operation” spent putting more police on the street than this soon-to-be billion dollar boondoggle.

 

 

(b) How many employees are working in and for the program?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (b) There are 350 employees working at the Canadian Firearms Centre, Department of Justice in or for the program.  This includes terms, indeterminate, casuals, and employees on secondment from other departments or through Interchange Agreements with various agencies.  There are presently 91 Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) employees at the Canadian Firearms Registry, employed through a Memorandum of Understanding between the Canadian Firearms Centre/Department of Justice and the RCMP.  Presently there are 228 civilian and uniform personnel in various jurisdictions where Federal/Provincial agreements have been developed to implement and administer the program.  These areas are the Chief Firearms Offices in Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Quebec.  The numbers are based on a point in time dependent on their respective Federal Provincial Agreements.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (B): More contradictory stuff here.  A briefing note to the Justice Minister Anne McLellan, dated April 12, 2001 stated: “There are currently just over 1,800 employees associated with the firearms program, counting the processing sites, the regions and all partners including the Registrar and the CCRA.  Over two-thirds are temporary (term and casual) employees.  There are currently 450 employees at the Central Processing Site in Miramichi, NB, about 430 of them employed by HRDC and the rest by Justice.  Earlier this year, approximately 135 RCMP employees were deployed to the Department of Justice in North West Region covering Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Yukon, Nunvaut and the North West Territories.  These employees are involved in the administration of the Firearms Program in the northwest opt-out jurisdictions.  The Canadian Firearms Centre office in Ottawa has a staff of about 186, half of them temporary.  There are about 680 involved in regional operations other than those of the Northwest Region, over two-thirds temporary (terms or contractors).  RCMP operations in Ottawa, which houses the office of the Registrar, has about 400 employees, almost two-thirds of them temporary.  The Canadian Customs and Revenue Agency (CCRA) has a full-time staff of 18 on the firearms file.  In addition, 155 are on contract in Ottawa for the development of IT systems.”

Where did approximately 1,200 employees go since April 2001?  Here’s part of the explanation – the Justice Department’s numbers are wrong!  On December 13, 2001 the RCMP responded to an Access to Information Act request (RCMP File: 2001ATIP-55522) reporting that they currently had 161.5 staff working on the Firearms Program – NOT 91 as reported to the House of Commons.

The government also failed to provide information on the hundreds of employees in the private companies that are working under contract to the government on the firearms program under their privatization scheme.

 

 

(c) How many police officers and police personnel are working in the program?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (c) Of the 350 employees at the Canadian Firearms Centre, Department of Justice, there are 34 police officers who are working for the program through the Secondment or Interchange Agreements between the Canadian Firearms Centre and their respective law enforcement agencies.  The total employee complement at the Canadian Firearms Registry includes 5 RCMP members, and 6 Civilian Members.  Of the total number of employees hired in the provincial jurisdiction that administer the program on behalf of the Federal government, there are 57 uniform personnel employed in the program.  It should be noted that all RCMP costs related to the firearms program, including salaries, are recovered from the Department of Justice.  There is no financial impact on regular Royal Canadian Mounted Police funding and resources or on other police budgets.  Overall, the firearms program actually yields significant savings for local police budgets and does not take from front-line operations.  Savings are achieved through freed-up time and resources since applications are now mailed to the Canadian Firearms Centre.  Police at the local level no longer use their time to process applications, which allows them to concentrate on their other policing and enforcement duties.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (C): This would be funny if it weren’t so outrageous.  Remember, I asked for the number of “police officers and police personnel” working in the program.  Not only did the government not answer the question, they didn’t even account for the 161.5 RCMP personnel working in the program.  Nor did the government care to count the number of police personnel working for regional and municipal police forces paid for by regional and municipal governments. 

 

Notice how the Liberals try to justify the expenditures on this billion dollar boondoggle by saying it’s not coming out of the RCMP’s budget.  The Liberals don’t seem to realize that spending tax dollars is about spending money where it will do the most good – this means on the highest police and public safety priorities.  The government is on the verge of spending a billion dollars on a fatally flawed gun registry that is totally useless to police on the street and does nothing to improve public safety.  How many thousands of police officers could we have put on our streets and highways and in our communities for a billion dollars?  More than 10,000 according the Solicitor General for the Province of Ontario.

 

 

(d) How many employees in the program are paid for by the federal government?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (d) In all jurisdictions, regardless of whether the provincial or territorial government is involved in administering the program, staffing costs are borne entirely by the Canadian firearms program.  The employees are paid for either directly by the federal government or indirectly through Interchange Agreements, Federal-Provincial Agreements or Memorandums of Understanding with program partners such as the RCMP.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (D): Notice once again, how the government didn’t answer the question.  They are very afraid of anyone finding out how huge this burgeoning bureaucracy really is, how much it has cost already and what it will cost in the future.  We trust the Auditor General of Canada will shed some light on this fiscal mess when she reports to Parliament in November.

 

 

(e) What is the total number of firearms registered?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (e) As of May 4, 2002 the total number of firearms registered was 3,871,156.

 

(f) What is the total number of firearms still to be registered?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (f) With several months left before the deadline, an estimated 3.1 million firearms still remain to be registered.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (E&F):  In May of 1976, Liberal Justice Minister Ron Basford published a report that stated: “At the same time, there has been a steady increase in the number of firearms in Canada.  Estimates place the number at over ten million in 1974, with almost one-quarter million added to the stock every year.  Most of these firearms are long guns (rifles and shotguns).”  The Minister was no doubt referring to an extensive Statistics Canada survey that reported that in 1974 the Firearms Stock in Canada consisted of 11,186,000 firearms.  Using the Justice Minister’s 1974 estimates I calculated: 10 million firearms + 6,500,000 (250,000/year x 26 years) = 16,500,000 firearms in Canada in 2001. Over the next eighteen years, despite the importation of 5 million firearms, the government lowered their estimates of the number of firearms in Canada from 10 or 11 million in 1974 to 7 million in 1994.  Where did millions of guns and their owners go?

 

 

(g) How many firearms transfers have there been since December 1, 1998?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (g) As of April 28, 2002 there have been 490,617 firearms transfers since December 1, 1998.

(h) What is the total number of valid firearms licence holders?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (h) As of May 4, 2002 there were 1,833,019 valid firearms licence holders.

 

(i) What is the total number of gun owners that still don't have a firearms licence?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (i) A comprehensive study undertaken in 2000 determined that there were 2.3 million active firearm owners in Canada.  There are now 2.1 million individuals in the firearms database.  Licencing has been a success achieving a 90% compliance rate.  As of May 4, 2002 there were 1.83 million valid licence holders, including those with Firearms Acquisition Certificates (FACs).  Firearms licence applications continue to come in, but some applicants are replacing existing FACs with licences.  Over 7,000 firearms licences have also been refused or revoked by public safety authorities.  Eligible firearm owners who applied by the deadline should have received their firearms licence by now.  Any outstanding cases involve either incomplete applications that need follow-up or applications that require a closer look because public safety risk factors were identified.  This screening process is working to keep firearms from those who should not have them.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (I): This is very odd.  As of May 27, 2002 the Justice Department reported that 304,375 owners of registered firearms didn’t hold a valid firearms licence.  Documents obtained from the Justice Department [ATIP File: A-2002-0063] show that as of May 27, 2002: (1) The total number of individuals in the Restricted Weapons Registration System (RWRS) that own firearms registered in the RWRS: 429,316.

(2) The number of confirmed licences in CFRS for firearms owned in the RWRS: 124,941.

(3) The total number of individuals that have re-registered their firearms: 96,237.

 

Here’s what the Department of Justice website claimed up until November 21, 2001:

 

(1) “It is estimated that there are 7.4 million firearms in Canada, owned by 3.3 million civilian gun owners. Approximately 24% of Canadian households (or 2.7 million in total) contain one or more firearms.” [Page 1]

(2) “The average number of owners (1.22 owners per household) and firearms (2.71 firearms per household) per gun owning household are based on different surveys, including Angus Reid (1991, 1998) and Environics (1997). These figures are used to estimate the number of gun owners and the number of firearms in Canada.” [Page 2]

(3) “The percentage of Canadian households that own firearms is based on several [11] national household surveys conducted on firearms ownership in Canada (See Table 1 for list of surveys and results).  The Number of gun owning households was derived from the total number of estimated households in Canada in 1998, based on the 1996 Census conducted by Statistics Canada (24% x 11.2 million Canadian households = 2.7 million gun owning households).” [Page 2]

 

SOURCE: Estimated Number of Firearms Owners, and Households with Firearms in Canada - Firearms Research Unit, Canadian Firearms Centre, Department of Justice - June 1998.  NOTE: This document was taken off the CFC website on November 21, 2001.

 

 

(j) What is the error rate in the firearms licencing and registration system?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (j) The figures are based on Licences and Registration Certificates – As of April 27, 2002, 99% of firearms are correctly registered according to identification and classification as required under the law.  99% of licences are correctly issued according to the person being the correct person, living at the address stated with appropriate privilege and safety training.  These error rates do not include the former Restricted Weapons Registration System database as this database will cease to exist as clients re-register into the new system.  These are the areas identified through a system search, but there are also a small number of errors for which we have no statistics that are addressed on a case-by-case bases as identified by the client.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (J): Once again this response conflicts with other Justice Department documents obtained through the Access to Information Act.  A Justice Department letter dated May 22, 2002 (ATIP File – A01-051/ok) states: “The error rate for applications received up to July 18, 2001, was 90% of a total of 362,375.  In addition to errors detailed in Appendix A, 42% of firearms registration applications contain errors in the firearms description, in comparison to the Firearms Reference Table.  The sum of the errors exceeds the number of applications received because the application is only counted once even though it may contain multiple errors.”

 

On April 9, 2002, the RCMP in response to our Access to Information request the RCMP (File 01ATIP-32218) provided the cold hard statistics used to calculate to the Justice Department’s 90% + 42% error rate in firearms applications. As of July 18, 2001, the RCMP’s Canadian Firearms Registry had received 362,375 firearms registration applications.  The RCMP provided a two-page document listing 60 different types of errors.  Amazingly, this RCMP document records a total of 970,647 errors.

 

Here are some of the more common firearms application errors the RCMP documented:

 

The Minister and his Parliamentary Secretary would now have us believe that in just 11 months they fixed almost a million errors in these 362,000 applications and have stopped clients from making similar errors on the other 3.4 million firearms applications they received since?  The Minister’s claims stretch the limit of what is believable beyond the breaking point.

 

And as far as the Parliamentary Secretary’s claim that 99% of the licences were correctly issued to the right person, living at the address stated” well according to the Justice Department’s own documents this is just plain false.  As of February 21, 2002 the department reported they had mailed out 1,625,915 envelopes to licenced firearm owners as part of their “Free” Registration Program and that 38,629 envelopes have been “Returned to Sender” by the Canada Post.  So much for the Parliamentary Secretary’s claim that 99% of the licenced firearms owners are “living at the address stated.”

 

More documents obtained from the Justice Department under the Access to Information Act (File: ATIP A2002-0063) show that 304,375 individuals do not have a valid licence to own the firearms registered to them: (1) The total number of individuals in the Restricted Weapons Registration System (RWRS) that own firearms registered in the RWRS: 429,316; (2) The number of confirmed licences in CFRS for firearms owned in the RWRS: 124,941 and, (3) The total number of individuals that have re-registered their firearms: 96,237.  Note: Numbers provided are as of May 27, 2002

 

Despite all this contradictory evidence from his own department, on Monday, May 27, 2002 the Parliamentary Secretary had the nerve to say, in this House that this error riddled gun registry is “doing a marvelous job.”   How can he continue to have any confidence in the Minister’s bureaucrats that are producing the bogus statistics he reads in the face of this documented evidence provided by the RCMP and the Justice Department in Access to Information requests?

 

According to another Department of Justice document dated April 28, 2000 they reported a 71% error rate in Firearms Licences and a 91% error rate in Firearms Registrations.  Dept. of Justice Access to Information File: A-2000-0209 dated March 19, 2002.

 

 

(k) In what percentage of all violent crimes are firearms actually used in the commission of the offence?

STATISTICS CANADA RESPONSE: (k)

 

Note: Excludes “other firearm-like weapons” (e.g. pellet gun, nail gun).

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (K): When Statistics Canada released their Crime Statistics for 1999, they reported on page two: "Police reported just over 291,000 incidents of violent crime in 1999."  The last paragraph on the same page stated: "In 1999, 4.1% of violent crimes involved a firearm."  Unfortunately, this 4.1% statistic was overstated because Statistics Canada defines “involved” not as “used” in the commission of the offence but only as “present” at the scene of the crime.  That’s why the RCMP statistics on firearms involved in crime are dramatically lower. 

 

In July 1997, the Commissioner of the RCMP wrote the Deputy Minister of Justice to complain about the department’s misrepresentation of RCMP statistics.  The Commissioner set the record straight: “Furthermore, the RCMP investigated 88,162 actual violent crimes during 1993, where only 73 of these offences, or 0.08%, involved the use of firearms.”  

 

The Library of Parliament Research Branch examined two different reports published by Statistics Canada on violent crime in 1999.  They determined that thePresence of a Firearm in Violent Incidents” was 4.1%, but the Use of a Firearm in Violent Incidents” was only 1.4% - three times lower than the figure normally reported by Statistics Canada and accepted and repeated by the media without any explanation.  If it is the government’s intent to reduce violent crime, clearly, responsible firearm owners are clearly the wrong targets!

 

 

(l) What percentage of all homicides are committed with handguns and prohibited firearms?

STATISTICS CANADA RESPONSE: (l)

 

Note: Figures represent counts of victims.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (L): Statistics Canada’s Homicide in Canada 2000 report released in November 2001 revealed that despite 67 years of mandatory handgun registration, the use of handguns in firearms homicides has been steadily increasing since 1974, from 26.9% to 58.5% in 2000.  Conversely, firearms homicides with rifles and shotguns that weren’t registered dropped steadily over the same 27-year period, from 63.6% to 30.6% (Table 6 – Page 9).  Makes a sane person wonder why the Liberals are trying to register millions of rifles and shotguns, doesn’t it?

 

 

(m) What percentage of firearms homicides are committed with registered firearms?

STATISTICS CANADA RESPONSE: (m)

 

Note: Figures represent counts of victims.

Note: Firearm registration is “unknown” or firearm is “not recovered” in approximately half of all firearm-related homicides.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (M): Obviously, registering these guns didn’t help these twelve murder victims.  Now all we have to find out is how many of these registered firearms were in the hands of the legal owner at the time of the murder.

 

 

(n) What percentage of firearms homicides are committed with firearms that should have been registered but were not?

STATISTICS CANADA RESPONSE: (n)

·         Of the 183 firearm-related homicides in 2000, 76 (42%) were committed with firearms that were not registered.

 

Note: It is not possible to determine whether or not a firearm “should” have been registered.

Note: Figures represent counts of victims.

Note: Firearm registration is “unknown” or firearm is “not recovered” in approximately half of all firearm-related homicides.

 

(o) What percentage of all homicides are committed with long guns?

STATISTICS CANADA RESPONSE: (o)

 

Note: Figures represent counts of victims.

Note: Long guns included rifles/shotguns.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (0): Statistics Canada’s Homicide in Canada 2000 report released in November 2001 revealed that despite 67 years of mandatory handgun registration, the use of handguns in firearms homicides has been steadily increasing since 1974, from 26.9% to 58.5% in 2000.  Conversely, firearms homicides with rifles and shotguns that weren’t registered dropped steadily over the same 27-year period, from 63.6% to 30.6% (Table 6 – Page 9).  Makes a sane person wonder why the Liberals are trying to register millions of rifles and shotguns, doesn’t it?

 

 

(p) What percentage of all robberies are committed with handguns and prohibited firearms?

STATISTICS CANADA RESPONSE: (p)

 

Note: Prohibited firearms include fully-automatic firearms and sawed-off rifles/shotguns.

Note: Figures represent counts of incidents.

 

(q) What percentage of all robberies are committed with long guns?

STATISTICS CANADA RESPONSE: (q)

·         In the period 1997-2000, 1% of all robberies were committed with long guns.

 

Note: Long guns include rifles/shotguns.

Note: Figures represent counts of incidents.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (P&Q): As we saw with homicides, handguns are also the problem in armed robberies – not rifles and shotguns.  Sixty-seven years of mandatory registration of handguns proves that registration of firearms is a failed policy.  Only the Liberals would see some advantage of spending a billion dollars to expand a policy that has proven to be a total failure.

 

(r) How many times are firearms used by citizens for self-defence every year?

STATISTICS CANADA RESPONSE: (r)

·         Statistics Canada has no data and is unaware of any alternate source of information for firearms discharge in self-defence.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (R): This is an amazing response for the government to make.  If the government has never determined how public safety is improved by the defensive use of firearms by law-abiding citizens, how can they possibly support their claim that their gun control laws are a net benefit to society?  It seems to me that the government has left out the most important piece of evidence needed for an intelligent debate and defence of their firearms laws and regulations. 

 

Surely, the government is aware of a peer-reviewed study titled, “Armed self defense: the Canadian case,” by Gary A. Mauser, Ph D, Institute of Canadian Urban Research Studies and Faculty of Business Administration, Simon Fraser University.  Doctor Mauser’s surveys found: “Canadians report using firearms to protect themselves between 60,000 and 80,000 times per year from dangerous people or animals.  More importantly, between 19,000 and 37,500 of these incidents involve defence against human threats.”

 

 

(s) How many individuals have a record in the Firearms Interest Police database?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (s) The Firearms Interest Police (FIP) is a database that was created as part of the Persons File of the Canadian Police Information Centre.  The FIP database holds information, on a national basis, identifying people who may be ineligible for a firearms licence.  The Firearms Interest Police data entry is performed by the police agencies themselves, by accredited police officers.  As of April 27, 2002, there were 3,829,529 records in the FIP database.  These are records of occurrences and not necessarily “criminal records”.  Moreover, the number of records does not correspond to the number of individuals or incidents in the Firearms Interest Police database.  This is because incidents will have multiple entries.  Therefore, the number of individuals contained in the Firearms Interest Police database is not available.

 

Chief Firearms Officers use FIP information in evaluating whether a licence applicant poses potential safety concerns.  An entry in Firearms Interest Police regarding an individual does not automatically mean that their application will be refused, but will trigger a more in-depth investigation.  The creation of the FIP and the linking police networks to the new registration system also facilitates continuous screening of licence holders.  When a violent incident is logged by local police, firearms authorities are alerted to this development electronically through the FIP and an investigation may be launched.  This could lead to the revocation of the individual’s licence.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (S): Once again the government’s response is contradicted by information obtained from the RCMP through the Access to Information Act.  On December 5, 2001, the RCMP reported: “The number of individuals listed in the Firearms Interest Police database (FIP) 3,731,716 as of November 3, 2001.”  RCMP File: 01ATIP-43166.

 

 

(t) How many people are prohibited from owning firearms?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (t) As of April 27, 2002 there were 127,124 persons prohibited from owning firearms in Canada.

 

(u) How many violations of these firearms prohibition orders have there been?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (u) No statistics are available to respond to this question.

 

(v) How many guns have been seized from these prohibited firearms owners?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (v) No statistics are available to respond to this question.

 

(w) How many times have these prohibited firearms owners been checked to make sure they have not acquired firearms illegally?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (w) No statistics are available to respond to this question.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (T,U,V, & W):  Here are 127,124 people in Canada who have been prohibited from owning firearms by the courts and the government doesn’t even know if their guns have been seized from them or checked to see if they have acquired more firearms illegally.  And yet they are spending hundreds of millions trying to track the firearms owned by completely innocent citizens.  Talk about having totally misplaced public safety priorities.

 

The Firearms Act gives the government the power to inspect the homes and businesses of completely innocent gun owners.  How about sending the police to inspect the homes of the 127,124 people already prohibited from owning firearms?

 

 

(x) How many people have had their firearms licences refused or revoked?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (x) As of May 4, 2002 there were over 7000 refused and revoked licence applications.  In terms of revocations, that is 50 times higher than the total for the last five years under the previous program, before December 1, 1998.  Some Canadians have also been prohibited from possessing firearms through court order.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (X): This is just another fictitious firearms fact produced by the Justice Department in a vain attempt to justify a fatally flawed program.  Here is the truth available from the Justice Department documents available on their own website for all to see:

(1)   In the five years under the previous program, before December 1, 1998, the RCMP report that they issued 338,862 Firearm Acquisition Certificates (FACs) and refused 2,705 for a rejection rate of 0.8%.  SOURCE: RCMP: Annual Firearms Reports to the Solicitor General of Canada.

(2)   Since December 1, 1998, the Department of Justice reports they have issued 1,769,757 Firearms Licences (POLs, PALs & Minors) and in their answer above claim they have refused and revoked 7,000 licences for a rejection rate of 0.4%.  SOURCE: Canadian Firearms Program Statistics, Canadian Firearms Centre website.  “Statistics last updated on: July 6, 2002.”

 

As anyone can plainly see, the firearms licence rejection rate was double under the old RCMP administered FAC program than it is under the new and improved Department of Justice administered Firearms Act.

 

(y) How many guns have been seized from these refused and revoked licencees?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (y) This question falls outside the purview of the Canadian Firearms Centre, which is not an enforcement body.  However, the registry provides information on licence holders and the firearms registered to them, which is essential in helping police determine what firearms must be legally disposed of or seized from an individual whose licence has been refused or revoked.

 

(z) How many times have these refused and revoked licencees been checked to make sure they have not acquired firearms illegally?

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESPONSE: (z) This question falls outside the purview of the Canadian Firearms Centre, which is not an enforcement body.  Of course, it is impossible to guarantee that someone who has been refused a licence will not purchase a firearm illegally, just as it is impossible to guarantee that any given individual will not offend.  However, there are laws in place that make it an offence to knowingly give, sell, or barter a firearm to a person who has been prohibited.  With the registration provisions coming into effect on January 1, 2003, accountability will be further enhanced with tracing of legal firearms back to their legitimate owner.  The government has put in place many legal checks and balances in an attempt to keep legal firearms out of the hands of persons who have been prohibited from owning and possessing firearms.

 

BREITKREUZ’S REBUTTAL TO (Y & Z):  Here are 7,000 people in Canada who have had their firearms licence refused or revoked and the government doesn’t even know if their guns have been seized from them or checked to see if they have acquired more firearms illegally.  A logical person would think that these people should be more of a priority for our scarce police resources than registering the guns owned by the 1.8 million gun owners who have obtained a firearms licence.