TheGunBlog.ca — Canadian law allows the government to ban guns by a cabinet prohibition order and, if Bill C-71 becomes law, will let cabinet delay confiscation by allowing existing owners to retain their guns, the Ministry of Public Safety said today. Zarah Malik, a spokeswoman for the ministry in Ottawa, made the comment to TheGunBlog.ca…

TheGunBlog.ca — The number of Canadians with a gun licence rose to a record in March after 24 straight quarterly gains, RCMP data show. The increasing appeal of sport shooting, particularly for women, also drove Canadian handgun owners to a new high. The country counted 2,186,161 adults with a firearm Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL)…

TheGunBlog.ca — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau may order gun bans against federally licensed hunters, farmers and sport shooters, CTV News reported today, citing an interview with Bill Blair, the minister exploring mass confiscation. Blair didn’t rule out the governing Liberal Party prohibiting firearms through a so-called “Order in Council” before the October election, he…

TheGunBlog.ca — The Conservative Party of Canada opposes the governing Liberal Party’s plans to ban guns from hunters, farmers and sport shooters, and will “scrap and reverse” Bill C-71 if the Conservatives win this year’s election, Member of Parliament Michelle Rempel said in a video this week. The Liberals are preparing to pass Bill C-71…

TheGunBlog.ca — Canada’s federal agency in charge of gun licensing everyone from hunters and farmers to Olympic shooters said it slowed printing the permits because of “technical circumstances,” fuelling speculation new firearm bans are imminent. “Due to technical circumstances, the Canadian Firearms Program (CFP) is producing firearms licence cards in a limited capacity between March…

TheGunBlog.ca — Canadian shooters are rushing to buy AR-15 rifles and other target guns on concern the government will ban new purchases in three weeks, said Firearms Outlet Canada Inc., one of the country’s biggest independent gun stores. Speculation of new prohibitions fired up four days ago after Tony Clement, an independent member of parliament,…

TheGunBlog.ca — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will ban AR-15 rifles owned by federally licensed sport shooters and stores next month, the Canadian Shooting Sports Association said, citing two government sources it didn’t name. “Today, two separate, unconnected government sources, one of whom who [sic.] has direct knowledge of the plan, confirm the Liberal government’s…

TheGunBlog.ca — About 30 New Zealand police officers raided a gun collector’s home, pointing their weapons at him and his 12-year-old daughter to confiscate his 11 lawfully owned firearms, Stuff reported, citing the homeowner. All his guns were seized in the raid, including ones that aren’t the target of the government’s confiscation order, the news…

TheGunBlog.ca — Following is a Q&A with Scott Patience, the owner of Bullseye London, a gun store in London, Ontario. He responds to questions about the demand for “Restricted” firearms, the outlook for business, gun politics and gun bans. Patience will be running a panel at Taccom, the Tactical and Competitive Shooting Sports Show organized…

TheGunBlog.ca — Canadian men and women own more than 1 million personal guns registered with the federal police, according to RCMP data, exceeding the symbolic threshold for the first time as shooting sports rise in popularity. Individuals with RCMP-authorized firearm licences owned 1,029,971 so-called “Restricted” and “Prohibited” handguns, rifles and shotguns as of April 30,…