OTTAWA — Police and political leaders in more than half of Canada have so far rejected taking any part in the federal government’s firearms compensation program. Robert Gauvin, its provincial public safety minister, also said in a previous statement that it declined to enter into an agreement with the federal public safety department to assist, calling on the federal government to develop a plan for collection that does not impact police officers. Federal officials say it has the ability to roll out the program in every jurisdiction, save for Saskatchewan and Alberta. Federal Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree confirmed on Tuesday that the Sûreté du Québec, the provincial police force, would participate. The federal government has set a budget of compensating gun owners from a pot of $250 million, expected to cover 136,000 weapons.
