The Liberal government decided to set the date to announce the ban of 1,500 “assault-style” firearms shortly after the 2020 Nova Scotia mass shooting that left 22 dead, Minister of Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair said on Monday.
Blair, who was overseeing the entire public safety portfolio at the time, was testifying before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety regarding allegations of political interference in the RCMP investigation into the tragedy.
Information surfaced in June suggesting that RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki had been under pressure to release information to the public on the firearms used by the perpetrator.
Conservative MP and public safety critic Raquel Dancho asked Blair at which point Lucki was made aware that the government would make the ban announcement on May 1, 2020….