Helping Duck Hunters keep their Shotguns in Canada
Canada has a national firearms registry and, in spite of the utter failure of the program to deter crime in any way and a cost overrun of more than a billion dollars, the registry still exists. Hunters had high hopes that Canada’s new Conservative federal government would fulfill a campaign commitment and scrap the registry, but a “minority” government situation has made this more difficult than expected.
In May of 2006, the new government announced an amnesty for those firearms owners who have had difficulty complying with complexities of the registration process. Delta issued a press release (APPENDIX VI) praising the government for this action and encouraged all political parties to support the elimination of the registry.
In fall 2006, the Liberal Party of Canada announced a resolution aimed to ban the ownership of semi- automatic firearms in Canada. Delta responded immediately with a letter to Liberal Leader, the Honourable Stephane Dion, voicing our concern with the resolution and the impact it would have on hunters in Canada (see letter in APPENDIX VII). Delta has launched a communications strategy to generate opposition to the resolution. In addition, Delta is currently organizing a coalition of hunting groups, the firearms and hunting industry against the resolution to ban semi- automatic firearms in Canada.
This potential ban also has obvious implications for US waterfowlers visiting Canada.
