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VANCOUVER — Justice Minister Peter MacKay says the federal government is still assessing whether to allow police to ticket people caught with small amounts of marijuana instead of pursuing charges.

MacKay says that if the government were to introduce looser pot laws, that would have to happen within the next six months because of the large number of bills before Parliament.

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MacKay, who spoke with reporters before meeting with law-enforcement experts in Vancouver, says his staff have been looking at other jurisdictions, including in the U.S., to see whether ticketing for pot possession is an effective option for police.

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Canada’s police chiefs have long called for such a move, and MacKay has already said the government was taking that into consideration.

But he stressed that the government remains opposed to decriminalizing or legalizing marijuana, though Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau supports legalization.

Currently, anyone convicted of possessing under 30 grams of pot can face fines of up to $1,000 or as much as six months in jail, while convictions for larger amounts can carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison.