New proposed federal legislation will impose a national freeze on handguns.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and a number of cabinet ministers announced the move late Monday afternoon.

“What this means, is that it will no longer be possible to buy, sell, transfer or import handguns anywhere in Canada,” said Trudeau.

The Prime Minister calls the proposed legislation a “concrete and a real national measure”.

Minister of Public Safety, Marco Mendicino, says the proposed legislation also deals with gender based violence, or a new “red flag” law.

“The bill will prevent individuals with a prior or current restraining order from obtaining a firearms license and will empower authorities to automatically revoke the licenses of those with a new restraining order,” explained Mendicino.

Prime Minister Trudeau also pointed to past legislation that has supported authorities across the country.

“In terms of gun smuggling, I will say that the investments that we’ve already made in RCMP and CBSA at our borders, has resulted in double the number of illegal guns seized last year as the year before,” said Trudeau.

During the news conference, Trudeau said there were discussions with municipalities and province’s about empowering them to toughen gun laws but it became clear that federal legislation was needed.

On May 1, 2020 laws came into affect banning over 1,500 models of assault-style firearms.