Dear Corinne,

Thank you for taking the time to write to me with your concerns regarding border regulations for weapons coming into Canada and the SPP, the so-called “Security and Prosperity Partnership”. The issue of guns flowing across our border and onto our streets is one that affects the safety of all Canadians, and the deregulation of laws according to the secretive SPP project will not make Canadian lives any safer from gun violence.   

The NDP supports your stance to not allow any exemptions on the requirement to obtain a permit to carry weapons in and out of Canada. Our firearms policy is to remove guns from the streets where they can cause undo harm to our citizens. In this session of Parliament, Peggy Nash (MP Parkdale-High Park) took the Conservatives to task for ignoring the needs of the community, failing to stop guns at the border and spending all of their time on punishment and too little on policing and prevention. “The Conservatives place all their energy on increasing jail sentences – while at the same time we don’t have enough police on the streets and illegal American guns flood our city.”

The NDP wants tougher border controls to stop the flow of illegal guns from the United States. With 30,000 guns being smuggled across our border every year, we must take action for the safety of our families and communities. I think you will agree that we also need to get tougher - much tougher - on some of the root causes of gun crime such as poverty, unemployment, and social issues. A more equitable Canada is a safer Canada.

I also agree with you that the so-called “Security and Prosperity Partnership” seriously undermines the security and safety of Canadians and Canadian democracy. This is an agenda that stretches across federal government ministries, harmonizing Canadian social, economic and security policies and reducing regulation in more than 300 different policy areas. Despite the significant impact the SPP would have on everyday Canadians, the negotiations have been conducted behind closed doors by government officials and the CEO`s of North America`s biggest corporations, without the oversight and consent of Parliament or the involvement of civil society.

The NDP has been working hard to expose the SPP agenda and thanks to the hard work of my colleague and NDP International Trade Critic, Peter Julian, we have forced the Conservatives to hold the first ever public hearings on the SPP at the Standing Committee on International Trade. The NDP will continue to propose full parliamentary oversight and public disclosure of the SPP.

Here in the riding of Ottawa Centre we are also taking action on this issue. I would be pleased if you would join me at a public forum I will be holding on August 20^th as part of the National Day of Action against the SPP. The forum will be held at the Bronson Centre (211 Bronson Avenue) at 7pm.  I will be joined there by Peter Julian as well as other leading opponents of deep integration. I hope you will join me in standing up for Canadian sovereignty.

Again, I appreciate hearing from you on this issue and I applaud your initiative in voicing your concerns to my office and to the Prime Minister. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any further concerns. It is important that I fully understand the concerns of my constituents in order to effectively serve as your representative in Ottawa.

Sincerely,

Paul Dewar,

MP Ottawa Centre