Hundreds rally at Winnipeg's city hall against federal gun buyback

Tory MP Raquel Dancho says using police resources for program 'very unfair and nonsensical'

Conservative MPs lead Winnipeg rally against gun buyback

Hundreds of people stood in the courtyard outside Winnipeg's city hall in 34 C heat on Monday to express their opposition to a federal effort to compensate owners of guns the Liberal government describes as "assault-style" firearms.

The $700-million program has faced widespread criticism for both its cost and its effectiveness. The federal government hoped to buy 136,000 firearms through the program but ended up with only 67,000.

Three Manitoba Conservative MPs — Kildonan-St. Paul's Raquel Dancho, Elmwood-Transcona's Colin Reynolds and Provencher's Ted Falk — and Canadian Coalition for Firearm Rights vice-president Tracey Wilson attended the hour-long rally.

It concluded with several dozen people marching down the east steps of the city hall campus to wave signs along Main Street.

Dancho said the rally took place at city hall because Winnipeg is among the few municipalities administering the federal program.

"I'm very proud of our Winnipeg police, very proud of the work they do," Dancho said following the rally.

"Unfortunately, we don't have nearly enough police to keep up with the violent crime in this city. So, the idea that we would have taxpayer dollars going toward police resources that would support the confiscation regime when we have such limited policing resources just really just seems very unfair and nonsensical."

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Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham was not present at city hall when the rally took place. His office declined to comment on the rally.

The Winnipeg Police Service entered into an agreement to administer the program in 2025, with the federal government set to cover all costs. A $2.8-million deal was set to run from February 2025 until March 2026, federal disclosures show.

City council approved the move in 2024 as well as the approval of up to $3.4 million in federal funding.

A spokesperson for the mayor's office said in January the move was not an endorsement of the program but meant to ensure any costs are paid by Ottawa.

Manitoba's NDP government refused to administer the program.