That seems like a very reasonable request under the circumstances. As you said, the concern is, and I'll quote you, Mr. Farrant, that there could be a “pseudo registry” if that certainty is not provided. The parliamentary secretary and the government like to repeat often that they're not going to return to the registry, which they now acknowledge was profoundly unfair. A small inclusion of explicit language would resolve this once and for all. I think that's a reasonable request considering a majority is going to push through Bill C-47. Rather than relying on a preamble that even legal scholars have said is not reliable to the point we'd like, explicit language with respect to an exemption for lawful use for hunters, for sport shooters, would satisfy this confusion.
I hope my friends on the government side heard your reasonable proposal and my suggestion, and we can, at the clause-by-clause stage, insert that so we can all be assured that this is going to be effective, at least from Canada's standpoint.
Some of our witnesses have said that because the big four weapons exporters around the world are not signatories, or will not abide by the treaty, our participation is merely symbolic. If we're going to be symbolic or an example to the world, we should do so in a way that eliminates concerns of lawful users of firearms.