BILL C-47: NEW IMPORT/EXPORT CONTROLS OR SOMETHING MORE?

As if the looming UN Marking Regulations weren't bad enough, the Trudeau government introduced Bill C-47 this morning, aimed at imposing new and entirely discretionary import/export regulations for the Canadian firearms industry.

Bill C-47, first read this morning, looks to introduce a new brokering permit for all firearms, ammunition, accessory and optic import/exports. Essentially, if the product being imported or exported has anything to do with firearms, it will require a brokering permit be applied for and issued. Like all new bills, especially those pertaining to firearms, it remains unclear as to the documentation required in order to obtain a permit. While Bill C-47 makes it clear that permits are required only for transactions regarding the import/export of firearms to or from a foreign country, it also requires that all documentation pertaining to the acquisition of an import permit, certificate, or allocation be retained for a period of six years, without providing any further clarification on what that documentation may be... leaving some to wonder if Bill C-47 doesn't allow for the creation of a new firearms registry by way of requiring end-user and consumer data to be recorded on import permit or certificate applications.

To be clear, we are not calling this a gun registry just yet... nor do we expect this to be the rumoured gun bill being worked on by Minister Goodale and his cohorts. However, it does in the very least represent yet another layer of bureaucracy to the business of firearms import and export in an already extremely regulated market, and may be just the first component in a multi-part gun control bill aimed at reducing imports/exports and sales as well as imposing restrictions on private ownership. Unfortunately, as yet, we just do not know.

[gview file="https://calibremag.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Bill-C-47.pdf"]