Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is quite right in saying that the tragic and troubling events in Toronto yesterday merely serve to remind us of the importance and the urgency of this challenge. Far from holding back proposals in this regard, the Department of Justice is busy preparing them in detail.
I returned this week from a trip to Alberta and the Northwest Territories; before that to British Columbia and Yukon; before that to the maritimes and Quebec; and before that to Ontario and the central part of the country. Everywhere I have gone I have spoken with interested groups, putting together a package of proposals that will be introduced in the House in the near future which will deal not only with illegal firearms but also with the criminal penalties for the misuse of firearms, and which will add further sensible and needed regulation to the control of firearms in private ownership. That is our proposal.