Canada's opposition leader, under pressure, abandons his commitment to end the ban on assault weapons

By David Ljunggren

VANCOUVER (Reuters) – The leader of Canada's conservative opposition abandoned his election promise on Sunday to scrap a ban on certain assault weapons after Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused him of cozying up to the lobby of fire arms.

Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole has faced pressure from critics ahead of the September 20 election over his party's stance on gun control, a sensitive issue in Canada, particularly in the wake of crimes including of a deadly shooting in 2020 in Nova Scotia.

Over the years, liberal governments have strengthened gun laws, which are stricter than those in the United States. Canada's rate of gun violence is significantly lower than its southern neighbor.

In their election platform, right-wing conservatives said they would drop a 2020 ban on 11 types of assault weapons, including those used in a number of mass shootings. O'Toole has previously said the restrictions unfairly penalize hunters and farmers.

“I want to make my position on guns crystal clear,” O’Toole told reporters in Vancouver. “The current ban on a number of firearms reclassified in 2020 will remain in effect.”

O'Toole, when pressed on the subject, did not explain this change and accused Trudeau of engaging in American-style politics and “dividing people, pitting East against West, rural areas to urban areas. Instead of abolishing the ban, Conservatives would launch a public review of how guns are classified.

The Conservatives acted to prevent Trudeau from turning the matter into one that could harm them, said a senior party official, who requested anonymity given the sensitivity of the situation.

Earlier in the day, Trudeau accused O'Toole of pandering to far-right elements in his party.

“Community safety is not a subject for negotiation with the gun lobby. And you certainly don't give them the pen to write your agenda,” he told reporters in Markham, Ont.

Weapons banned in 2020 include the Ruger Mini-14 rifle, which a gunman used to kill 14 women in Montreal in 1989.

Gun control is expected to be on the agenda for two televised leaders' debates this week, in which Trudeau will attempt to revive a campaign that insiders say is struggling amid voter fatigue and dissatisfaction with the timing of elections. elections.

Trudeau called the vote two years earlier to serve as a referendum on his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A rolling Nanos Research poll of 1,200 people conducted Sunday for CTV puts the Conservatives at 34.9%, the Liberals at 33.4% and the left-leaning New Democrats at 18.9%.

A day earlier, Nanos had the Conservatives at 35.5% and the Liberals at 33%.

(Reporting by David Ljunggren; editing by Peter Cooney)