OFAH FILE: 842
October 26, 2011

OFAH Refutes Claim that Scrapping of Long Gun Registry will Eliminate Access to Firearms Information
Police still have many sources of information related to firearms

PETERBOROUGH, ON -- In the aftermath of the introduction of Bill C-19, An Act to Amend the Criminal Code and Firearms Act, spokespersons for the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, anti-gun groups and opposition parties are claiming that the abolition of the long gun registry, and all associated data, will rob police of a valuable tool to keep track of guns in Canada, and leave them with 'nothing to check.'

""Nothing could be farther from the truth,"" said OFAH Executive Director Mike Reader. ""As the President of the Canadian Police Association noted, police have sources of information and data other than the long gun registry that enables them to keep track of what they consider to be firearms threats. The information available through firearms licensing alone ensures that police will know who is legal to own firearms in Canada. CPIC, the National Information Centre, registries of restricted and prohibited long guns and handguns, which are not affected by Bill C- 19, information that exists in local or provincial databases like PRIME in British Columbia, and databases maintained by the RCMP (SPURS), the OPP and other police forces contain a wealth of information, and they keep growing.""

Mr. Reader noted that the long gun registry is and always has been a database of people who have done nothing wrong. ""Instead of lamenting the loss of this badly flawed system, which targets the law abiding as opposed to the lawbreaker, police and others who are rallying to the defence of the registry should be supporting the creation of a database that tracks people who shouldn't have guns, those who have committed crimes with firearms, who have been charged with domestic violence, or for other reasons have been ruled ineligible and have been turned down for a firearms licence. The focus should be on those who shouldn't have guns, not those who have demonstrated, through training, safe storage and safe use, that they pose no threat to public safety.""

With over 100,000 members, subscribers and supporters, and 670 member clubs, the OFAH is the province's largest nonprofit, fish and wildlife conservation-based organization, and the VOICE of anglers and hunters. For more information, visit www.ofah.org.

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