The Liberal government has tabled legislation to end the prohibition on pot, checking off a major promise from the 2015 campaign.

The pot plan comes with two new bills; one to regulate the recreational use, sale and cultivation of marijuana, and a second that strengthens measures to stop impaired driving.

It would allow people to possess up to 30 grams of dried or fresh cannabis and sets the minimum at 18 years of age, though provinces and territories can set a higher legal age.

Consumers can grow up to four plants at home or buy from a licensed retailer. Dried and fresh pot and cannabis oil will be available first, with edible products to become available later.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has repeatedly said the goal of legalization is to restrict access of marijuana to minors and choke off profits from sales by organized crime.

Bill Blair, who Trudeau appointed as his point man on the marijuana file, said there is no plan to promote the use of pot and stressed that buying, selling or using marijuana outside the regulatory regime will remain a serious criminal offence with stiff penalties.

Public health framework

He said Canada consulted broadly with other jurisdictions that have legalized marijuana, including Colorado and Washington states, to learn what worked and what did not. Canada's approach is different in that it is based on a public health framework over a commercial basis.

"It has focused entirely on how to reduce the social and health harms associated to cannabis in its production, distribution and consumption," Blair said during a news conference after the bills were tabled. "And that focus enables us to avoid many of the pitfalls that other jurisdictions have experienced, where the focus was primarily on maximizing revenue."