Mr. Speaker, in response to the hon. member for Elgin—St. Thomas—London South, I am pleased to be able to tell him about our government's commitments to strengthening gun control and fighting gun violence in Canada.

The safety of Canadians is one of the government's top priorities, and we are taking decisive action to prevent a rise in gun violence across the country, in all of our communities. In 2020, following the deadliest mass shooting in Canadian history, in which 22 Nova Scotians died, the government felt that the significant risk posed by certain firearms could in no way justify keeping them in Canadian communities. As a result, the government banned over 2,000 makes and models of firearms. Let us be clear, these are firearms that are not suitable for hunting or sport and that exceed safe civilian use. More firearms were banned in December 2024 and March 2025, bringing the total number of prohibited firearms to 2,500.

A compensation program that focused on businesses was put in place first. As of April 30, 2025, businesses have claimed compensation for more than 12,000 prohibited firearms, and as of June 16, more than 10,600 of these firearms have been destroyed. The government will soon introduce the second phase of this program, which will fairly and equitably compensate owners in the same way as it did gunsmiths. Work to expand this program to individuals is progressing well.

However, no single program or initiative can address the issue of gun violence. In addition to the gun buyback, the government's comprehensive plan to protect Canadians from gun crime includes other significant measures such as strengthening our borders, where we are committed to adding resources to combat gun trafficking and smuggling in order to keep guns from entering Canada.

Since 2017, the government has invested more than $1.3 billion in security initiatives, including the initiative to take action against gun and gang violence, the building safer communities fund, and investments to equip the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canada Border Services Agency with state‑of‑the‑art tools such as X-ray machines to detect smuggled firearms and firearm parts.

Furthermore, in the last throne speech, the government announced the deployment of scanners, drones and helicopters to detect illegal goods, as well as additional personnel and canine teams along the border. This will greatly increase the ability of law enforcement to detect and seize firearms at the border.

Furthermore, criminal sanctions for firearms smuggling and trafficking recently increased from 10 years in prison to 14. This change should act as a more powerful deterrent and support the prosecution of offenders involved in firearms smuggling. Together, these efforts seek to prevent guns from being diverted to the black market, where they would be used to commit crimes, such as future shootings.

Through these initiatives, the government is acting responsibly. It is taking concrete action to make Canada less vulnerable to gun-related violence, all while—

Jacques Ramsay

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