For immediate release
April 1, 2026
QUEEN’S PARK: “…will he commit to using every provincial tool available – including legislation – to protect the rights of Ontario firearms owners?” That was the question Haldimand-Norfolk MPP Bobbi Brady posed in the Ontario Legislature a day after the federal government deadline for Canadian gun owners to declare their prohibited firearms to qualify for compensation under the federal gun buyback program.
“I see the buyback as an unconstitutional attack on the rights of Ontarians,” Brady told members of the House.
Brady also told the Chamber she agreed with Premier Ford’s sentiments last month when he praised a homeowner who used a firearm to defend himself against intruders. She also said that she and the premier are in agreement the buyback targets legal gun owners and hunters rather than criminals. But she was concerned there has been no official statement from the Ontario government, “So, I would say this is precisely the moment that calls for real protection, not soundbites.”
She relayed the anxiety legal gun owners are experiencing due to the gun buyback program regarding property rights, the effectiveness of the policy, logistical hurdles, and the potential criminalization of previously law-abiding gun owners.
She also questioned why the government is leaving Ontarians exposed to a patchwork of enforcement instead of delivering real, province-wide protection like Premiers Danielle Smith and Scott Moe of Alberta and Saskatchewan respectively.
The questions were fielded by Solicitor General Michael Kerzner who stated the Ontario government does not support the federal government’s gun buyback program.
Brady shot back: “I’m questioning why the minister would allow our firearms owners to wait?… I want to point out that both Saskatchewan and Alberta are leveraging provincial legislation to protect gun owners from federal confiscation, including Saskatchewan’s new certificate of exemption and Alberta’s prohibition of local law enforcement involvement. I have the legislation right here. It’s already done for us. This government, you’re building a reputation on tough talk when it comes to the buyback – but I will remind you, the minister, rhetoric does not lawfully protect a single Ontario firearms owner.”
In the end, Minister Kerzner didn’t commit to concrete legislation as is found in Saskatchewan and Alberta.
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For more information, contact MPP Bobbi Ann Brady at [email protected] or 519-428-0446