On December 6, 1989, I was in Montreal, at the CEGEP just down the hill from the École Polytechnique.

I can’t tell you what I was studying that day.

But I will never forget the moment I heard the first news reports of a massacre at the École Polytechnique.

I was in complete shock at first. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

As a 17-year-old, I could not understand how such an act of violence against women could happen in a country like ours. In a society like ours.

Every Canadian has their version of this story.

Every one of us remembers the day when we realized that, even in Canada, a man with a gun could irrevocably alter our lives for the worse.

We remember how our sense of safety was shaken. How our world view was changed. 

École Polytechnique. Mayerthorpe. Dawson College.

Moncton. La Loche. La grande mosquée de Québec.

The Danforth. Fredericton.

And Cumberland, Colchester, and Hants Counties, Nova Scotia.

These tragedies reverberate still.

They shape our identity. They stain our conscience.

They make adults out of children.

And the heartbreaking truth is they are happening more often than they once did.

With each passing year, more families are ripped apart by tragedy.

More parents are struggling to explain the inexplicable to their kids.

And more teenagers are growing up in a world where gun violence is normalized.

It needs to stop.

Last week, 22 Canadians were killed in the deadliest rampage in our country’s history.

They were nurses and teachers. Correctional officers and RCMP officer.

They were someone’s child. Someone’s best friend. Someone’s partner.

Their families deserve more than thoughts and prayers.

Canadians deserve more than thoughts and prayers.

In the last election, we made a commitment to ban military-style assault rifles and implement a buy-back program.

We announced our intention to work with the provincial and territorial governments to allow municipalities to ban handguns.

We also promised to take other measures to save lives.

In October, Canadians entrusted their elected representatives with a clear mandate: to strengthen gun control in Canada.

And today, we are keeping our promise.

Today, we are closing the market for military-grade, assault weapons in Canada.

We are banning 1,500 models and variants of these firearms by way of regulations.

These weapons were designed for one purpose and one purpose only: to kill the largest number of people in the shortest amount of time.

There is no use – and no place – for such weapons in Canada.

For many families, including many Indigenous people, firearms are part of traditions passed down through generations.

And the vast majority of gun owners use them safely, responsibly and in accordance with the law – whether it be for work, sport-shooting, for collecting or for hunting.

But you don’t need an AR-15 to bring down a deer.

So, effective immediately, it is no longer permitted to buy, sell, transport, import or use military-grade, assault weapons in this country.

To protect law-abiding gun owners from criminal liability until they can take steps to comply with this new law, there will be a two-year amnesty period and we will legislate fair compensation.

Now, I want to take a moment to recognize the leadership of Minister Blair on this file.

Tackling gun violence has been a personal and professional priority of his for decades. He’s done incredible work to make this policy a reality.

And we are here today thanks to his leadership and to the leadership of people like him. Thank you Bill.

Today we are closing the market for military-grade assault weapons in Canada.

We are banning 1,500 models and variants of these firearms by way of regulations.

These weapons were designed for one purpose and one purpose only: to kill the largest number of people in the shortest amount of time.

There is no use and no place for such weapons in Canada.

Across the country, many people use firearms legally and responsibly, whether it be for work or for hunting.

But you don’t need an AR-15 to bring down a deer.

So, effective immediately, it is no longer permitted to sell, buy, transport, import or use military-grade, assault weapons in Canada.

To protect law-abiding gun owners from criminal liability, there will be a two-year amnesty period to allow them to bring themselves into compliance with these new regulations.

And we intend to table a bill in the near future to ensure fair compensation.

30 years from now, an entire generation of Canadians will remember exactly where they were on Sunday, April 19, 2020.

They will remember how their sense of safety was shaken. How their outlook on the world was forever changed. 

They will remember the day that they lost some of their innocence. 

This chapter in our history cannot be rewritten. 

But what happens next is up to us.

We can stick to thoughts and prayers alone.

Or we can unite as a country and put an end to this.

We can decide, together, that enough is enough.

Today’s announcement builds on the things we did during our first term. It’s the next step.

And there is more work ahead to implement this and pass legislation to further strengthen our laws.

I’ve already spoken with the other parliamentary leaders and I know that we will be able to work together and do even more to keep Canadians safe.

Every single Canadian wants to see less gun violence and safer communities.

So today, we take another big step forward.

Thank you very much.