Premier Doug Ford says he is against a council-requested ban on the sale of handguns and their ammunition within Toronto’s boundaries.“I wouldn’t support a ban on handguns,” Ford said Thursday. “There’s a lot of legal, responsible handgun owners.”“We have to refocus all our resources going after the bad guys, not the good guys.”Read more:Toronto voters have public safety, gun crime on their minds, poll saysGun violence a ‘significant concern’ for Canadians, Bill Blair saysCall for Toronto handgun ban after Danforth shooting reignites passionate gun control debateCouncil made the request of the federal government, which controls gun sales, and the provincial government, which is responsible for ammunition sales, at a meeting last month. A motion from Councillor Joe Cressy passed 41 to 4 (Councillors Jon Burnside, Michael Ford, Stephen Holyday and Giorgio Mammoliti were against).Ford pointed to Chicago — where the Ford family business, Deco Labels, operates — where he claimed there is a ban on handguns but still a high number of shootings.“You look at Chicago — you all know that I spend a ton of time in Chicago — and they have a ban and guess what, last week they had 72 shootings, 72 or 76 shootings. Imagine that.”But there has not been a ban on legally possessing handguns in Chicago since 2010 when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a nearly 30-year ordinance, stripping the city of some of the strongest gun controls in the country. According to Chicago Police, there were 70 shooting incidents reported citywide between July 30 and Aug. 5.In Canada, most people can’t legally possess a handgun. Licences for this “restricted” class of firearm are limited to those who are collectors, target shooters and who qualify for their job, such as trappers.Chief Mark Saunders told council during a debate on gun violence on July 24 that 50 per cent of firearms ...
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