Poilievre defends firearm owners amid calls to ban SKS rifles

"We have to ask ourselves, have these bans on hunters and farmers and licensed sports shooters stopped mass shootings," said Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre.

X (Pierre Poilievre)

On Thursday, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre opposed calls to ban new sales of SKS rifles after a deadly Montreal shooting that killed a police officer, a civilian, and the suspect.

Montreal police have not confirmed the weapon used, but social media images show a long gun at the scene. Experts suspect it may be a semi-automatic Soviet-era SKS rifle, according to CTV News.

Juno News@junonewscom

Poilievre offered condolences to the victims of the Montreal shooting, then questioned whether expanding gun bans prevents violent crime. "Has it worked?" he asked. "Gun crime is up 50%." Poilievre says targeting hunters, farmers and sport shooters does not stop mass shootings.

9:20 PM · Jun 25, 2026 · 18.2K Views

---

29 Replies · 142 Reposts · 1.24K Likes

Regardless of the firearm used, Poilievre told reporters it’s time to question whether current gun control policies are effective.

“I think now is the time to judge [if] the result has worked,” he said. “Gun crime is up 50 per cent since they promised they were going to ban these guns. We have to ask ourselves, have these bans on hunters and farmers and licensed sports shooters stopped mass shootings. These are the questions we have to ask.”