‘A pretty big hit’: Sask. gun store loses $40K in inventory, following federal gun ban

About $40,000 worth of guns have been removed from a Saskatoon store, following the latest federal ban.

“It’s a pretty big hit for any gun store, and we’re a small store,” Back Forty Guns & Gear worker Lance Kelsey told CTV News, standing in front of an empty cabinet where a 9mm carbine rifle used to be on display.

“They’re just sitting in the back.”

Last week, the Canadian government added 324 makes and models to a list of firearms that can no longer be bought, sold or imported.

“Our goal is to ensure that no community, no family, is devastated by mass shootings in Canada again,” said Dominic LeBlanc, Canada’s public safety minister, announcing the ban.

The ministry says more than 19,000 guns are still available for hunting and sport shooting.

In May 2020, the government prohibited 1,500 makes and models of assault-style firearms. The additional 324 guns “share the same technical characteristics as those prohibited in May 2020,” according to the feds.

Kelsey said the ban targets lawful gun owners. He says he’s been answering questions from owners about what to do with their newly-prohibited guns.

“They have to sit in your safe, and not move, until the government decides what they’re going to do,” Kelsey said.

Public Safety Canada said the government “will provide fair compensation for businesses and owners affected by this prohibition, as well as the prohibition announced in May 2020.”

The federal government said all the banned firearms will be included in a compensation program.

The first phase of the buy-back program is in testing, according to the ministry. The program will be open to all firearm businesses across the country “in the next few days.”