Leslyn Lewis: Aiming for Common Sense

Written by Leslyn Lewis

When it comes to public safety, the responsibility of the government should be to protect the rights of law-abiding Canadians, while keeping guns out of the hands of criminals.

Recently, we have seen that government is leaving criminals alone, while cracking down on law-abiding farmers, hunters and sports shooters.

I’ve practised criminal law.

So I understand exactly what the threat of organized crime, gun smuggling and gangs are to our communities.

As a mom, I am not afraid of law-abiding firearms owners – I am afraid of criminals. Like every parent, I want my children to inherit a safer world than the one I grew up in.

As someone who has gone through the Canadian Firearms Safety Course, I also know firsthand how many rules that Canadian firearms owners must comply with in order to store, transport and use their firearms.

We are seeing more and more that governments are encroaching on our property rights. Hunters, sport shooters, and farmers should be able to enjoy their property, and them doing so doesn’t make Canadians any less safe.

The Liberal government has also taken action to remove the ability of rural Canadians who live hours away from the nearest law enforcement to protect their homes, families and livestock.

Every single resource the government is putting towards taking guns away from our farmers, hunters and sports shooters should be re-routed to stopping illegal firearms from being smuggled into our country and ending up in the hands of criminals.

We need to invest in effective programs that will stop gangs from preying on vulnerable youth. We need strong education and training programs to discourage young people away from a life a crime.

We also need a simplified classification system that is determined by gun experts, law enforcement, farmers, and sports shooters, instead of politicians and bureaucrats.

I will launch a full review of all current firearms laws to ensure that government efforts are focused on keeping guns out of the hands of gangs and other criminals.

I will also revoke the May 2020 order-in-council that unfairly penalized law-abiding firearm owners.

We should not play politics with public safety. I will repeal Liberal rules that crack down on law-abiding Canadians, and I will turn the focus back on criminals in order to improve public safety.

It’s time for common sense to return to government. It’s time for safety to take precedence over politics.