Canada PM Justin Trudeau announces 'immediate ban' on new handgun sales in latest gun control action
Addressing a press conference attended by family members of gun violence victims and other advocates, the Canadian PM said, "As we see gun violence continue to rise... we have an obligation to take action."
FollowCanadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced that federal regulations prohibiting the sale, purchase or transfer of handguns within the country have come into effect.
Addressing a news conference in Surrey on Friday, Trudeau said, "We have frozen the market for handguns in this country."
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Addressing a press conference attended by family members of gun violence victims and other advocates, the Canadian PM said, "As we see gun violence continue to rise... we have an obligation to take action."
The decision to freeze the market for handguns was announced in May alongside proposed legislation that would implement Canada's strongest gun control measures in 40 years as part of Trudeau's plan to tackle gun violence in the country.
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"In May, our government introduced measures to implement a national freeze on handgun ownership. Today, our national freeze on handguns is coming into force. From today forward it is no longer legal to buy, sell or transfer a handgun in Canada," he said.
"We have frozen the market for handguns in this country, and our ban on imports that took effect in August remains in place. This is one of the strongest actions we've taken on gun violence in a generation," he added.
According to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the move will stop people from buying, selling or transferring handguns within Canada, and prevent them from bringing newly acquired handguns into the country.
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The gun laws in Canada are stricter than the United States (US), but Canadians can own firearms with a license.
It is reported that Canada's rate of gun violence is lower than that of the United States, but is still higher than other wealthy countries and has been rising, with handguns the main weapon used in the majority of firearm-related violent crimes between 2009 and 2020.
