THUNDER BAY — Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP Marcus Powlowski is clarifying his position on gun control after sending a letter to the government outlining concerns about a proposed ban on millitary-style assault rifles.
"They are not my views. I'm passing on the views of a whole bunch of my constituents," Powlowski said in an interview Wednesday.
The letter the rookie Liberal MP wrote to Public Safety Minister Bill Blair last week has been picked up on social media by some opponents of the gun-control plan to try to discredit the government's rationale.
One individual tweeted "This is from Liberal MP. He knows an OIC [Order in Council] is going down a slippery slope. He also knows that a ban doesn't do anything to stop the street violence. Give this man kudos to standing up to his own party."
Powlowski, however, was quick to point out that he stated in the letter he was only sharing feedback he had received from constituents, and that he feels it's his role to ensure these views are brought to the minister for his consideration.
"More people have contacted me about the gun issue than any other issue," he said in an interview, but added "I am fully supportive of the government's position."
The letter included a summary of the feedback Powlowski said he's received from his riding where, he told Blair, "safe and legal firearm use is an important part of Northwestern Ontario's cultural heritage, and many of our hunters, law enforcement officers and sporting enthusiasts are actively engaged on this policy issue."
He outlined six points that constituents have raised with him:
- the term "military style assault rifle" is too broad...and seeks to target certain firearms without a rational basis
- the term focuses more on style than functionality and may lead to an arbitrary ban of certain guns based purely on aesthetics
- firearms that could be classifed as "military style assault rifle" are frequently used for legitimate hunting purposes, including the AR-15 family or guns made by Lee-Enfield
- a ban does not directly deal with the root causes of crime
- enforcement of the ban will strain police resources
- the order-in-council process should not take the place of an open debate in Parliament
Powlowski, who has stated he's heard more about gun control from voters than about any other issue, concluded by urging the minister to take the feedback into consideration.
In his comments Wednesday, he said he has full confidence in Blair's ability to make the decision as to what is and what is not going to be permitted.
Much of the negative comments he received from constituents, he said, is "people getting prematurely worked up about something without actually having read the regulations that are going to be coming out."
Powlowski added that he expects the measures that are ultimately announced will be a reasonable compromise between competing interests.
In Winnipeg this week, Blair indicated he believes a prohibition of assault-style rifles can be accomplished "in the near term."
