Canada: Handful of NDP MPs to decide fate of gun registry

The fate of the controversial long-gun registry appears to rest with a handful of New Democrat MPs, leaving NDP Leader Jack Layton in a sticky position. A Tory private member's bill to scrap the registry passed second reading last fall by a narrow vote of 164-137, with eight Liberals and 12 New Democrats siding with the anti-registry Conservatives.

But Liberals now say their dissenting MPs are solidly behind Leader Michael Ignatieff, who has instructed all Grits to oppose the bill when it comes to another vote late next month. In return for their reluctant support, Ignatieff is promising that a Liberal government would streamline the registration process, eliminate fees for gun licences and decriminalize first-time failures to register firearms. Liberal MP Wayne Easter, one of the most adamant opponents of the registry, said he now intends to vote against Tory MP Candice Hoeppner's bill.

Source: The Canadian Press

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