00:01:47.800Well, it means that since the federal government first introduced this confiscation scheme,
00:01:53.220we've been absolutely and unequivocally clear.
00:01:56.460We will oppose any policy that undermines law-abiding firearms owners,
00:02:00.820including ineffective and extremely expensive buyback programs
00:02:05.420that don't actually speak to the root cause of the problem.
00:02:09.640What should they expect, though, firearms owners in your province when that amnesty period is over?
00:02:14.360Do you think that police in Alberta will be looking for folks that have these now prohibited firearms and charging them with federal crimes?
00:02:23.020Because that is what the law states. Is that something that people in your province should be prepared for?
00:02:28.740Well, look, we've said that we will not cooperate with the confiscation scheme.
00:02:33.140We will not participate in any federal programs that create criminals out of law-abiding Albertans.
00:02:39.000And so in response to that, we've prevented our municipalities in Alberta from crafting piecemeal arbitrary firearms legislation.
00:02:47.960We've notified our policing agencies that enforcement of this gun grab is not a priority for our police detachments,
00:02:54.400that they need to be focusing on criminals and illegal activity.
00:02:58.400We've also provided guidelines to our Crown prosecutors that prosecuting these charges stemming from this scheme is of low priority,
00:03:05.420And we've developed regulations making it absolutely clear that anyone looking to act as a confiscation agent for the federal government must obtain a provincial license or be in breach of provincial laws.
00:03:21.120We stand by our law-abiding gun owners and we'll do everything that we can to make sure that honest Albertans are not made into criminals by illogical and politically motivated policies.
00:03:32.300Alberta and Saskatchewan seem to be arming up, and the rest of Canada is finally starting to notice.
00:03:38.460Across the prairies, gun sales are climbing very quickly, and applications for gun licenses are higher than they've been for a very long time.
00:03:47.560The RCMP's most recent report shows over 360,000 licensed gun owners in Alberta alone, and nearly 120,000 in Saskatchewan,
00:03:56.300giving both of these provinces some of the highest per capita ownership rates in the entire country.
00:04:02.300No one is going to take the guns away in Saskatchewan, and I think largely you're going to see that across Canada.
00:04:07.540However, if there's still a federal law on the books, if they decide to continue down this path,
00:04:12.520which we encourage them to have another look at, and I think 9 out of 10 provinces would have the same encouragement.
00:04:18.360They're going to say that your firearm's illegal, they're not coming to get it, but it's now worthless.
00:04:23.440So what we've said is they have to provide fair market value,
00:04:27.520And until they do, you can continue to store your own firearm if you are storing it in an appropriate way, in a safe and secure way.
00:04:36.720And by doing that, you're doing that for the benefit of the province so that we don't have to do it on your behalf.
00:04:41.880And that's where the exemption under Section 117 of the Criminal Code comes in.
00:04:45.760You're exempt from prosecution if the federal government has declared your firearm illegal,
00:04:50.480if you are doing us the benefit of continuing to store that firearm securely.
00:04:55.640Provincial governments of these provinces remain defiant against gun confiscations.
00:05:01.260They're refusing to go after law-abiding gun owners.