HARJIT S. Sajjan, Minister of Emergency Preparedness, and Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim on Thursday announced a federal investment of more than $4.2 million to prevent gun crime and gang violence in Vancouver.

Sajjan, on behalf of federal Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, said: “Preventing young people from getting into gangs is a personal focus for me and a priority for our government. That is why we are partnering with the City of Vancouver on community-led projects that will help give youth purpose and the life skills for success. Keeping everyone in our great city safe is our top priority – and that starts with dealing with the root causes of gun and gang violence.”

Sim said: “I’m thrilled that the federal government is investing in public safety, especially for our youth, to support Vancouver’s 2023-2026 Youth Safety and Violence Prevention Strategy. We teamed up with over 800 children and youth, along with 110 partners from youth-serving agencies, to develop this strategy. Our mission is clear: tackle the root causes of youth violence and find community-driven solutions that prevent its occurrence and recurrence. We’re proud to collaborate with our federal government partners to build environments where Vancouver youth feel safe, valued, and ready to thrive.”

The federal government said it was also securing the borders and fighting gun smuggling. To that end, it has invested nearly a half billion dollars and further strengthened its cooperation with the United States. As well, it banned over 1,500 models of assault-style firearms and implemented a freeze on the sale, purchase and transfer of handguns.