The Trudeau Liberals’ gun grab of prohibited firearms is delayed again.. Marco Mendicino .Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino provided program details on Wednesday..The cabinet proposed to purchase about 1,500 models of banned guns for an unknown cost, but the program has yet to start..“We are dedicated to moving forward with this program as quickly as we can, but we also have to make sure we get the buyback program right,” Mendicino told reporters..“It’s a program without precedent. It’s national in scale.”.The department of Public Works, in a memo last Aug. 31, set a firm 2023 deadline to launch the program, according to Blacklock’s Reporter..“The national rollout is planned for spring 2023,” said the Transition Book memo..An amnesty period for “assault-style firearms” owners expires October 30..Mendicino made no mention of either deadline on Wednesday..He announced a $700,000 grant to the Canadian Sporting Arms and Ammunition Association to begin an inventory of targeted firearms held by retailers and wholesalers..“We are engaging third parties in the public and private sector to take advantage of their expertise and capacity,” said Mendicino..“No single program or initiative can tackle the challenge of gun violence by itself.”.“It sounds like you’re still at the beginning of this work,” said a reporter..“We’re going to do everything we can to launch this program,” replied Mendicino..“How much is this buyback costing?” asked a reporter..“I’ll have more to say about that as we lay out this initiative stage by stage,” replied Mendicino..Conservative MP Raquel Dancho (Kildonan-St. Paul, MB) described the announcement as disappointing..“Not one single illegal gun will be taken off the streets by Mendicino’s announcement,” said Dancho..Cabinet in 2021 estimated the costs at “somewhere between $300 million and $400 million,” according to then Public Safety minister Bill Blair..Consultants said the buyback would involve 110,000 firearms..The department of Public Safety estimated it could involve 200,000 firearms..The Budget Office (BO), in a 2021 report, said the number could run as high as 518,000 firearms..Details of the program “remain unclear,” according to the BO report Cost Estimate Of The Firearm Buyback Program. Analysts put expenses at $756 million..“There remain too many outstanding questions on how this program will be implemented to currently develop a complete picture of the true potential cost of the program,” said the Cost Estimate report..“While the government has prohibited these firearms and has reiterated its commitment to offer fair market compensation, the details regarding how the voluntary buyback program will be implemented remain unclear,” said the BO..The BO noted a similar 2019 program in New Zealand saw administration costs double original estimates without any evidence of “how effective the overall program was.”
