OTTAWA, ON – The Hon. Pierre Poilievre, Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada and the Official Opposition, released the following statement on the Liberal withdrawal of amendments to Bill C-21:

“For months, the Liberals have denied and lied about what we always knew – they want to ban hunting rifles. Despite their denials, they are now backpedalling and are temporarily pausing their attack on law-abiding Canadians. But there is no doubt that Trudeau will ban hunting rifles if ever given the opportunity to do so.

“He has already admitted that this is his goal. In an interview with CTV, Trudeau said, “our focus now is on saying okay, yes, that we’re going to have to take away from people who were using them to hunt.”

“The Liberals faced a massive public backlash over this from ordinary Canadians who saw this for what it was; the largest attack on hunters in Canadian history. The only reason that the Liberals are withdrawing is because of strong Conservative leadership resisting this attack on farmers, hunters, and Indigenous people.

“This is part of the Liberal plan to divide and conquer Canadians. It may have backfired for now, but the mask has been lifted, and there is no doubt the Liberals will try this again. This is just a temporary pause. We will not let up, and we will never let Trudeau ban hunting rifles.

“Hunting rifles are not the problem. No one believes that going after hunters will reduce violent crime across the country. Conservatives support common-sense firearms policies, and we will continue to defend the noble traditions and way of life of millions of law-abiding Canadians.

“After eight years, Canadians are sick and tired of Justin Trudeau’s divide and conquer approach. Violent crime is up 32% since Justin Trudeau took office. Gang-related homicides have increased 92%. We will stand up for the law-abiding hunters affected by this Liberal government’s ineffective bans and advocate for real, common-sense laws that keep guns out of the hands of dangerous criminals. We will keep violent, repeat, dangerous offenders behind bars, and we will restore safe streets.”