Renewed call for Canadian handgun ban

TORONTO, Sept. 18 (UPI) -- The call for a national ban on handguns in Canada expanded from Toronto's mayor to the premier of the province of Ontario.

Speaking in Toronto, Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty said a spate of shootings in the city Tuesday, including one at a high school, led him to believe a ban was necessary.

"I know this is somewhat controversial in some constituencies and in some parts of the country and I understand that," he said. "But there's one thing I think Canadians share as a whole -- we want to protect our kids. We want to make sure they can go to school and come home safely."

His ban suggestion echoes that of Toronto Mayor David Miller, who in April launched the www.toronto.ca/handgunban online petition for federal leaders to take action.

"Handguns are designed for one purpose and that is to kill people and have no place in our society," Miller's online statement says.

However, the Toronto Sun said there doesn't appear to be of much interest at the federal level among leaders of the Conservative, Liberal, New Democratic Party or Bloc Quebecois parties.