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REGINA — Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe trumpeted new gun legislation passed Wednesday by his government, while praising his justice minister as “the hottest lawyer in the province.”
Moe, in a speech to rural leaders, lauded the work of Tim McLeod and played a video of the justice minister championing the law at a committee this week. He also referenced McLeod’s spouse.
“I also heard this morning that his wife, who’s a good Shellbrook girl, had mentioned to him, that’s the hottest thing a lawyer has ever said, so we’ve got to get Tim home here pretty quick,” Moe said to some laughter at the convention of the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities.
The premier is from Shellbrook and represents the town north of Saskatoon as part of his constituency.
Moe’s Saskatchewan Party government has long challenged the federal gun buyback program.
The new provincial law allows owners to apply for exemption certificates on guns prohibited by the federal government.
Moe said certificates would allow owners to continue to possess and store their guns until Ottawa provides fair compensation for them.
“We have taken a very significant and I think firm stand when it comes to standing up for law-abiding gun owners in this province and across the nation,” Moe told the convention delegates.
“There’s been successive Liberal governments that on more than one occasion, have tried to institute some type of a gun grab.”
The province said applications for certificates would be only available to those with valid licences and they must be in good standing.
The law also aims to exempt owners from some charges.
It cites a section of the Criminal Code that gives firearms exemptions for police, military and people who are under the authority of federal or provincial governments.
Under Saskatchewan’s law, gun owners can be designated as “acting on behalf of and under the authority” of the province.
Moe later told reporters the province is not breaking the federal buyback law.
“It’s actually complying with it,” he said. “The goal of this is to actually have the (federal gun buyback) law repealed.”
Earlier this year, Ottawa launched a program to compensate firearms owners to remove “dangerous, assault-style firearms” from communities.
The federal government gave a deadline of March 31 for owners to submit declarations to ensure payment.
Ottawa says owners are required to schedule appointments with RCMP or local police to turn in their firearms, and they have until Oct. 30 to do so.
“Owners in possession of a prohibited firearm or device following this date will be non-compliant with legislation and could face the loss of their (possession and acquisition licence), as well as criminal liability,” the federal government had said in a news release.
The federal government did not immediately comment on Saskatchewan’s law.
Moe told delegates it would take “years and years and years” for firearms to be assessed and turned in.
McLeod later told reporters that gun owners will have to register with the firearms office if they want to receive a certificate and be covered by its protections.
The province wants to ensure gun owners receive full compensation, he added.
The Opposition NDP said in a statement it supports the provincial law.
“The federal government should focus on going after criminals instead of law-abiding gun owners,” it said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 11, 2026.
Jeremy Simes, The Canadian Press
