Having first run up the flagpole the possibility of a national handgun ban, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has now taken it down heading into the Oct. 21 federal election. There will be no legislation banning handguns in the current Parliament. That’s good because it ends, for now, the never-ending debate in Canada over “banning handguns,” a distraction from effective measures to combat violent urban street crime, an example of which Toronto experienced again on Monday during the Raptors’ victory parade.

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Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction Minister Bill Blair, the former Toronto police chief, said if the Liberals are re-elected, they will look at banning “assault-style” weapons (long guns) and giving municipalities increased powers to restrict firearms. They would also consider even tougher storage rules for legal gun owners, more prosecutions of people who purchase guns legally and then sell them illegally, and tougher border controls to combat handgun smuggling from the U.S. None of these ideas are new and the Liberals would have to reveal what specific measures they’re taking about. What “assault-style” weapons that are now legal would they ban? What new powers would they give cities like Toronto to further restrict firearm use? How would existing laws requiring the safe transportation and storage of legal guns be toughened?

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We agree with cracking down on illegal handgun sales and curtailing gun smuggling from the U.S., but what new measures would the Liberals use? Finally, what about enforcing the laws we have and longer prison terms for criminals using handguns?

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