The federal government's pilot program for its contentious firearms buyback initiative has concluded with results that critics are calling a colossal failure. The six-week trial, conducted this past fall in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, saw a dramatically low turnout from gun owners.
Pilot Program Falls Drastically Short of Target
According to details from the federal public safety department, officials had anticipated that residents of Cape Breton would surrender approximately 200 firearms during the month-and-a-half-long trial run. The actual result was a mere 25 guns turned in to authorities.
The financial implications of this low uptake are striking. Ottawa had provided the Cape Breton Regional Municipality with $149,760 to administer the pilot project. When divided by the number of firearms collected, the cost to taxpayers equates to nearly $6,000 per gun.
This figure stands in stark contrast to the typical market value for rifles and shotguns in Canada, which generally ranges from $500 to $2,500, with an average price around $700. While $6,000 firearms exist, they are considered rare within the Canadian market.
National Expansion Planned Despite Poor Results
Despite the pilot project's underwhelming performance, the Liberal government has decided to proceed with plans for a nationwide rollout of the buyback program. The initiative aims to confiscate what the government terms assault-style weapons from lawful owners, including hunters, farmers, and sport shooters.
The logic of expanding a program that failed in a contained community of under 140,000 people to a national scale covering over 41 million citizens across the world's second-largest landmass has been questioned by opponents.
The program's origins are linked to the 2020 mass shooting in Nova Scotia, where gunman Gabriel Wortman killed 22 people. However, it is noted that none of the firearms used in that tragedy were obtained legally; most were smuggled from the United States, and one was stolen from a police officer.
Widespread Police Opposition to the Program
The Cape Breton location was selected partly because the local police force was among the few municipal services that expressed support for the confiscation plan. This support is not widespread among law enforcement agencies across the country.
Police services in many major cities, the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), and at least four provincial governments have refused to participate in the buyback. They argue the scheme is an inefficient use of critical resources.
This sentiment was echoed by the National Police Federation, the union representing RCMP officers. In a public statement, the federation asserted that the buyback diverts extremely important personnel, resources, and funding away from addressing the immediate and growing threat posed by the criminal use of illegal firearms.
The federal government's next steps will be closely watched as it attempts to transition the buyback from a failed pilot to a national program, facing significant logistical challenges and ongoing opposition from law enforcement and gun owners.
