Toronto city councillors have voted overwhelmingly to ask the federal government to ban handguns.
Mayor David Miller did, however, come up three votes short of the unanimous result he had hoped for in an attempt to put maximum pressure on the Stephen Harper government to act on handguns.
Coun. Michael Thompson, who’s been active on law and order issues, was one of three councillors to oppose the request for a ban, saying it won’t work. “I think we’re providing a false sense of security,” Thompson (Ward 37, Scarborough Centre) said.
Coun. Case Ootes (Ward 29, Toronto Danforth) and Doug Holyday (Ward 3, Etobicoke Centre) also voted against the bid.
Miller argued strong gun laws do work. “If you look at countries where there is strong gun legislation, there is a corresponding lowering of the rates of not just murders, but suicides and accidental deaths. There’s no doubt about it.”
