OTTAWA -- Federal minister Bill Blair says his ideas for new gun-control rules might come within weeks.

Since August, Blair been working on ways to get handguns and assault rifles off Canada's streets, with measures that might include anything from restrictions on sales to crackdowns on smuggling.

Today he told reporters he hopes to complete the work soon and present a report to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Part of Blair's mandate as the minister for organized-crime reduction is supporting Minister of Public Safety Ralph Goodale's Bill C-71, currently in its second reading in the Senate.

The bill includes changes to the Firearms Act and Criminal Code.

The Liberal government is concerned that the bill's provisions won't do enough to stop gang violence in large cities such as Toronto.