The owners of Wolverine Supplies of Virden were on Parliament Hill last week voicing their industry’s objections to Bill C-71.
Wolverine owner John Hipwell and his son Matt Hipwell were invited to speak on behalf of firearms vendors across Canada. John has been a vocal advocate for the industry for many years.
Addressing the Standing Committee on Public and National Security in Ottawa Thursday, May 31, John said, “We will always support improvements to the firearms control system if they improve public safety and national security, and are fair and practical.
“Sadly, Bill C-71 fails to achieve this.”
Arms classification
Both men are critical of the way firearms are classified in this country and the fact that the RCMP’s Firearms Reference Table (FRT) is treated like the ultimate authority on weapons in Canada even though it isn’t a legal document.
Matt Hipwell, a former RCMP officer, says the FRT’s flaws have had a negative effect on businesses like Wolverine Supplies.
He told the committee that the RCMP have made mistakes in weapons classifications in the past and should not have sole responsibility for that job.
“As the FRT is only the opinion of the RCMP, there is no legal standing and we have no formal appeal process to challenge any decision they make.”
“We need clear firearms definitions in legislation,” he told the committee. “And there must be the ability to appeal…. This is too important to be left to personal interpretation.”
Call for revisions
He called on the government to revise the proposed Bill C-71 to include “a process with transparency, one that’s consistent, evidence-based, includes consultation with firearms owners and subject matter experts, and has an appeal process… that’s what we want.”
In his presentation to the committee, John Hipwell gave the example of a particular Turkish semi-automatic shotgun his business and others wanted to import.
The RCMP, he says, made a mistake identifying the firearm and incorrectly classified it as restricted, making it harder to sell and use in Canada.
Hipwell challenged that decision and eventually the classification was changed to non-restricted. But the entire process took from 2010 to 2016.
“This delay of six years for a correction translates into several million dollars in lost sales (across Canada) which has a direct impact on small businesses and employment,” he told the committee.
Other critics
The proposed bill has raised the ire of many gun owners and advocates with its proposed amendments to Canada’s firearms regulations.
They say it does nothing to tackle gun violence, but burdens legitimate gun owners with more red tape.
They also fear the bill aims to bring back the long gun registry (although Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale denies this) and say it doesn’t give police enough resources to fight crime.
Goodale introduced Bill C-71 in March, 2018. The standing committee will now review the testimony of the Hipwells and other presenters and make recommendations to the House of Commons.
