Canada's Trudeau announces legislation to prevent buying and selling of handguns

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday his government was introducing new legislation to implement a "national freeze" on handgun ownership and prevent people from buying and selling handguns anywhere in the country.

"The day this legislation goes into effect it will no longer be possible to buy, sell, transfer or import handguns in Canada," Trudeau told reporters.

If passed, the freeze on handguns is expected to come into force in the autumn. Canada's public safety minister has tabled regulatory amendments in parliament to ensure it can be implemented swiftly, according to a ministry statement.

The killing last week of 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Texas in the United States has fed concern about gun violence worldwide. Canada already has significantly stronger gun ownership restrictions than its neighbor to the south.

The new legislation, Bill C-21, also proposes taking away the firearms licenses of those involved in acts of domestic violence or criminal harassment, such as stalking.

The government will also require long-gun magazines to be permanently altered so they can never hold more than five rounds, and will ban the sale and transfer of large capacity magazines.

"Other than using firearms for sport shooting and hunting, there is no reason anyone in Canada should need guns in their everyday lives," Trudeau told reporters at a briefing.