The majority of paintball and airsoft guns will become illegal in Canada if the Liberal’s gun ban legislation is passed, according to Provencher MP Ted Falk, and he's not impressed.

As Falk sees it, the Liberal’s proposed law goes way too far when it suggests banning guns that he says are little more than toys. Because of the way Bill C-21 is drafted, all assault-style rifles will be banned if it takes effect, including any airsoft or paintball gun designed to look like one.

Simply put, Falk believes the Liberals do not have the best interest of all Canadians in mind when it comes to this bill.

“They are pandering to the folks that believe guns kill people, when we all know it is people that kill people and sometimes they use guns and sometimes they use other weapons,” he states. “By presenting and trying to pass legislation that would make it tougher for firearms owners to acquire and use guns in a safe and responsible manner, they are appealing to the concerns of folks in the urban centres who are very fearful of firearms in general.”

While Falk is incensed at the general trajectory of the legislation and does not feel targeting law-abiding farmers and hunters will reduce criminal activity, he feels limiting a harmless recreational industry largely dominated by young teens is even more obscure.

To spread awareness of the bill’s implications and generate conversation, the Conservative Party launched a nation-wide petition shortly after it was tabled. That petition just recently closed, ending with roughly 37,000 signatures. Falk says that number is not insignificant when considering that the petition was geared specifically towards players in the airsoft and paintball industries.

“These folks have recognized how detrimental this legislation is going to be to their business, it is going to throw a lot of people out of employment and also force a lot of businesses to close down.”

Falk is hopeful this list of individuals will encourage the government to reconsider their legislation or, at the very least, change their wording.

“The point is to show the government that there are people right across Canada who don’t agree that these present a public safety risk,” he continues, “and that they are penalizing people who are running legitimate airsoft and paintball businesses.”

Falk expects the bill will come up again in the House of Commons during the spring sessions and believes his party has a compelling case to make against it.