Mr. Speaker, opposition members continue to confuse fact with fiction when it comes to the firearms program. Allow me to clear up any confusion they may have.
The government does not intend to privatize the Canadian firearms program. The government is exploring outsourcing options to ensure that the system is as efficient and cost effective as it can be while continuing to improve public safety. We owe this to Canadian taxpayers.
The government is not compromising the privacy of people in the system. In fact, any new technologies will serve only to enhance the stringent privacy measures already in place.
The government has been clear about the cost and clear about the benefits. More than 2,600 licence applications have been refused or revoked for public safety reasons and 65,000 potentially dangerous gun sales have been delayed for further investigation.
This system is helping to keep guns out of the hands of those who should not have them. The facts are clear. It is unfortunate that critics of the program refuse to look at them and acknowledge that the system is working.