Buyback or Backburner? Police Push Back in Canada’s Gun Policy Debate

In the unfolding debate over Canada’s new federal gun buyback program, a sharp note of dissent has come from within one of the country’s largest city police services. The Toronto Police Service (TPS) has made it clear it will not participate in the federal effort to collect and compensate owners of prohibited firearms, saying no viable operational plan was presented and that its focus must remain on combatting crime rather than administering the program. TPS’s position adds to growing provincial and municipal reluctance as the controversial initiative gains traction.

Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree confirmed the city police’s stance this week, telling reporters that Toronto’s police informed Ottawa that it lacked sufficient details on how the program would function and therefore could not commit to assisting in firearm collection. TPS officials also emphasised that policing resources are stretched and that the service wants to prioritise front‑line public safety efforts such as targeting criminals using illegal firearms.

Under the federal Assault‑Style Firearms Compensation Program, owners of nearly 2,500 banned firearms — many prohibited since 2020 — are eligible for compensation if they turn in or permanently deactivate their guns by the end of the amnesty period later this year. But while the government has said the compensation process is voluntary, compliance with the underlying law is mandatory, meaning owners must dispose of or deactivate prohibited firearms by the legal deadline.

Toronto’s reluctance to assist in the buyback rollout is part of a wider patchwork of resistance across Canada. Provincial police services such as the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) have declined to participate, and Alberta’s government has even signalled that it will not comply with the federal program, echoing similar concerns that the initiative won’t meaningfully reduce gun crime and could divert policing resources from higher‑priority threats like illegal firearms smuggling.

The government plans to deploy mobile collection units and other mechanisms outside local police participation to support the program’s delivery in cities like Toronto. But TPS’s public refusal highlights the complexity of implementing a nationwide policy in a federation where jurisdictional cooperation can vary widely. As the debate proceeds, officials on all sides say they remain committed to public safety — even as disagreements about how best to achieve it continue to surface.

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Sources:

The Epoch Times reporting on Toronto Police Service’s decision, CTV News Toronto coverage of TPS statement, related community reactions.