Gun Registry Claims Exaggerated

Supporters of the controversial gun registry have resorted to inflated and outright false claims to justify keeping it alive. Access to information requests have revealed many of the key points used by anti-gun activists, including the Chiefs of Police Association and the Coalition for Gun Control, are misleading at best and distort the true facts. For example:

Claim number 1:
The registry is accessed 6,500 times per day by police

This daily number of 'hits' has climbed faster that the registry costs, from 2,000 per day just a few months ago to a claimed 6,500 daily 'hits.' Access to Information data indicates that whenever a police officer accesses information from the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) database, it automatically produces a 'hit' on the firearms database, even if it is only a license check for a parking ticket. Also, the registry is accessed whenever there is a firearm transfer, sale or transport authorization check. There is no way to determine how many of the 6,500 'hits' are actual requests for firearms information at a specific location. See the Q&A (#18) on the official website for the Ministry of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness (http://www.psepc.gc.ca/media/nr/2006/nr20060517-3-en.asp).

Claim number 2:
Police need the information on the registry to determine if a home they are entering has firearms

In order to possess a registered firearm, an individual must be in possession of a firearms license. The licensing information can be accessed by the police officer and would indicate that the household would contain firearms. In reality, police will, as a rule, treat every home as having a potential firearm whether legal or illegal. See the Q&A (#17) on the official website for the Ministry of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness (http://www.psepc.gc.ca/media/nr/2006/nr20060517-3-en.asp).

Claim number 3:
Up to 50% of firearms used in crime are stolen from legal gun owners

Access to Information data reveals that the 50% figure was a 'best guess' by a Toronto police official and not based on any relevant data. All credible, documented studies indicate that the vast majority of firearms recovered from criminal acts are smuggled (from 83% to 97% depending on the study – Vancouver Police study indicated 97% of recovered firearms were smuggled).

The Firearms Act has been a huge waste of valuable resources and has proved to be a dismal failure in preventing violent crime. Some people are unable to comprehend that public safety is not compromised because people commit crimes with guns; it is compromised because people commit crimes. The only way to deter violent behaviour is to make it too costly for the criminal. The mandatory sentencing provisions previously announced by the government will go a long way to making our streets safer.

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