Law360 Canada (October 8, 2026, 4:31 PM EDT) -- Just weeks after Canada’s government created a chief firearms officer for the country’s northern territories, the Yukon has tabled legislation that would allow for the creation of its own “firearms advocate.”
On Oct. 7, Yukon’s government introduced the
Yukon Firearms Act — a law being proposed in a bid “to support responsible firearm owners” in the territory.
A
news release notes that the move reflects views “shared by many Yukoners during a public engagement,” which ran from July 2 to Aug. 7 and received 268 responses.
“Traditional activities like hunting, trapping, target shooting and being on the land are core parts of northern culture and livelihoods and support nutritional needs across the Yukon,” states the release. “Firearms are an essential part of many of these activities and support safety while on the land in remote wilderness.”
The new Act would lead to the creation of a Yukon firearms advocate, who would look out for legal gun owners; support education, training and safety; advise Yukon’s minister of justice on gun matters; communicate with the public and businesses on gun-related issues; and “hear and understand” the perspectives of residents.
The release notes that the appointment of a firearms advocate “is not part” of the Canadian Firearms Program, which, as per the federal
Firearms Act, oversees the licensing and registration of guns and is responsible for safety training standards and providing assistance to law enforcement.
Yukon’s proposing of the legislation for an advocate is unrelated to the federal government’s recent creation of a firearms officer for the territories, it also states.
Last month, Ottawa
announced it would be establishing a “dedicated” chief firearms officer (CFO) to serve the Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
According to a news release from the time, the new CFO will have “exclusive responsibility for firearms services in all three territories and is supported by firearms officers in each territory,” and will be responsible for administering Canada’s
Firearms Act.
Yukon has been openly critical of Ottawa’s sweeping firearms ban, which since 2020 has built a list of more than 2,500 firearms that lawmakers have reclassified as illegal.
The territory had also been openly critical of Ottawa’s Assault-Style Firearms Compensation Program, an amnesty-based initiative allowing the owners of these now-illegal guns to turn them in for compensation.
The compensation part of the program ended in March, and the overall amnesty for owners ends at the close of this month.
Both the gun ban and buyback program have been criticized by those who feel they punish responsible gun owners.
Regarding Yukon’s proposed legislation for a firearms advocate, its minister of justice spoke of the territory’s opposition to federal gun policy.
“Our government has consistently opposed unreasonable federal firearms policy and programs, and we are committed to supporting responsible firearm owners,” said Laura Lang in a statement. “The
Yukon Firearms Act is one initial but important part of this work, and I thank everyone who participated and shared their views with us during public engagement to inform this legislation.”
Saskatchewan has also criticized the federal ban and buyback program.
Late last year, the province’s government introduced legislation that would allow residents to take the federal government to court if they found themselves shut out from being compensated for their guns.
And this past March, it proposed legislative changes that would allow gun owners of banned firearms to keep them on behalf of the province through a “certificate of exemption,” which would allow owners to hold onto their guns until compensated.
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