Philnocchio lied about the gun registry!

Everything Phil has ever said about the gun registry is false.

CBC broke the story...

Long-gun registry efficient: RCMP report
Last Updated: Wednesday, August 25, 2010 | 10:02 PM ET

CBC News

An RCMP evaluation report of Canada's long-gun registry concludes that the program is cost effective, efficient and an important tool for law enforcement, CBC News has learned.

The findings of the report, conducted with the help of outside auditors and completed six months ago, have been in the hands of the government since February, but have not yet been released.

Rifles line an Ottawa hunting store's shelves in this 2006 photo. An RCMP evaluation report of Canada's long gun registry concludes that the program is cost effective and efficient. (Jonathan Hayward/Canadian Press)
One section of the report states: "The program, as a whole, is an important tool for law enforcement. It also serves to increase accountability of firearm owners for their firearms."

The report found that the cost of the program is in the range of $1.1 million to $3.6 million per year and that the Canadian Firearms Program is operating efficiently.

“Overall the program is cost effective in reducing firearms related crime and promoting public safety through universal licensing of firearm owners and registration of firearms," the report states.

The full report contains over 40 pages of analysis of the effectiveness of the firearms registry, in both urban and rural areas. The RCMP would only confirm that the report is still being translated and could not give a firm date for its release.

The Conservatives have denounced the long-gun registry, which was introduced by the Liberal government of Jean Chrétien in 2002, as wasteful and ineffective.

A private member's bill being considered this fall that would scrap the registry.

Conservative MP Candice Hoeppner's bill, which passed second reading in the House last spring, is slated to face a vote in the House of Commons in September.

Earlier this week, Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair, president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, said Canadians must see the report before Parliament votes on the issue.

“If that information is in fact made available to Canadians and to Parliamentarians then perhaps our parliamentarians will be in a far better position to make an informed decision about Bill C-391 and they will have a much better understanding of the value of the gun registry to law enforcement and public safety," Blair said.

His comments came as members of the police chiefs' association at their annual meeting endorsed a national firearms strategy that includes a recommendation for a public relations campaign to explain the value of the long-gun registry.

Police chiefs and police organizations across Canada have voiced support for the registry, saying it is a valuable tool in assisting officers in doing their job.

But some police officers have expressed support for eliminating the registry, saying it doesn't give frontline officers any comfort when they are entering a home or pulling over a driver.

Phil's Gun Crazy

The following is a great recent article in the Expositor:

Keep the long gun registry, Mr. McColeman

By Pat Kawamoto, The Brantford Expositor, August 7, 2010

Contrary to Brant MP Phil McColeman’s recent article on ending the long gun registry, not all Canadians are fed up with paying for it.

While the initial cost to implement the registry was high, police associations confirm that it is now controlled by the RCMP and costs this country a reasonable $4.1 million per year to run.

Also, while McColeman’s article iimplies that police chiefs and officers do not support the long gun registry, it should be noted that all of the major Canadian organizations representing police support the registry -including The Canadian Police Association, representing 41,000 police officers in Canada and The Canadian Association of Police Chiefs.

Additionally, Ontario’s Attorney General, public health organizations, labour organizations, social organizations, women’s safety experts and many others support the long-gun registry.

In fact, the parliamentary standing committee on public safety and national security, which McColeman acknowledges he is a part of, recommended to the House of Commons in its latest report that the government should keep the long-gun registry as it is a tool “…that promotes and enhances public security and the safety of Canadian police officers.”

Here’s what the experts are saying (visit www.guncontrol.cafor more information) and what McColeman’s article didn’t tell you:

– As of 2009, 111,533 firearms were seized by police for public safety reasons. Of those 87,893 or 78.8% were long guns;

– Of the 16 police officer shooting deaths in Canada since 1998, 14 were the result of long guns.

– Police across Canada access the long gun registry about 11,000 times a day, or more than four million times a year. Of those inquiries, more than 2,800 a day, or one million a year, directly involve community safety issues.

– Between 1974 and 2008, 40,000 long guns were stolen from Canadian residences and 1.85 million long guns changed hands in Canada since 2006. Registering long guns holds owners accountable for the safe storage of their firearms, for reporting lost or stolen guns and reduces the chances that legally owned guns will be diverted to unlicensed owners.

– On average, one in three women killed by their husbands is shot -88% of them with legally owned rifles and shotguns.

– When firearms are available, domestic homicides are more likely to involve multiple victims and end in suicide.

– Northern Ontario communities have higher rates of long gun ownership and gun-related injuries than the provincial average.

– Contrary to popular belief, it is relatively easy to register a long gun and it is free.

McColeman states in his article that the Conservatives support the registration of prohibited and restricted weapons but not the registration of long guns.

His argument for this is that the long gun registry is ineffective as criminals do not register their guns. If criminals do not register their long guns, why would they register their prohibited and restricted weapons?

Where is the logic in supporting one registry over another?

In closing, keep the long gun registry, Mr. McColeman — don’t waste the significant tax dollars already spent and please help protect our families and communities.

Pat Kawamoto was born and raised in Brantford and is a career banker currently working as an independent financial planner. She is a strong believer in giving back to both the local communities in which we live and the broader global communities with which we share our humanity.

http://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2702500