Germany won't legalize cannabis completely after all

Health Minister Karl Lauterbach wanted to legalize cannabis as quickly as possible. The leadership of Germany's Social Democratic Party (SPD) now admits that this is unlikely to happen for some time, as the obstacles in Brussels are apparently too great.

The German authorities are therefore planning to proceed with a scaled-down version of cannabis legalization, having abandoned - at least for the time being - a more ambitious proposal that would have paved the way for the legal sale of cannabis throughout the country.

Lightweight legalization of cannabis in Germany

«We're on the right track. We've revised the proposals a bit,» Lauterbach said in brief comments on Friday, according to Zeit. He added that he would «soon» be coming back to the European Union (EU) with a «good proposal» that protects the general health and safety of young people.

The new plan is a two-part model that appears to be an attempt by German officials to legalize cannabis as widely as possible without going against EU rules.

First, the policy change would allow limited cannabis sales in certain areas - akin to a local pilot program as in Switzerland or to some extent in the Netherlands - for a period of four years. This would enable civil servants to see the impact of the reform in both major cities and more rural areas. If the program is deemed a success, it could be extended to other parts of the country.

While this part of the proposal will be submitted to the European Commission for review, Mr. Lauterbach's plan would also allow Germans to grow their own cannabis for personal use, confirming rumors of cannabis to be decriminalized in Germany. This change would not require a green light from the EU.

Details of the home-growing rule have yet to be finalized, but figures of 3 to 5 plants per household are circulating. Reports indicate that consumers could be allowed to possess 20-30 grams of cannabis under the proposal. In addition, non-commercial growers could then organize and distribute cannabis among themselves through Cannabis Social Clubs such as already exist in Spain.

Supporters of legalization in Germany said Friday they were eager to learn more about Mr. Lauterbach's proposal.

https://twitter.com/kristine_lutke/status/1641802947360088069

«Finally! Kristine Lütke, a member of the German parliament and the Free Democratic Party's spokesperson on addiction and drug policy, wrote on Twitter, «I'm really looking forward to hearing more about Mr. Lauterbach's proposal. «Really looking forward to hearing the exact details!»

The failure of legalization is not yet a foregone conclusion

All these measures fall far short of the initial project for the traffic light coalition, which was to legalize cannabis completely in the short term. For some time, there had been indications that this project would encounter obstacles in Brussels. With its decision, the SPD leadership now admits that these obstacles are probably too great, and that we should therefore not expect legalization any time soon.

«Our objective remains complete legalization, including cultivation and distribution in line with European law. We support the federal government in taking the necessary measures», stresses the SPD. At the end of March, Minister Lauterbach intended to present a law for the legalization of cannabis throughout Germany, for which he had already submitted basic information. The draft was then to be sent to the European Commission in Brussels for examination.

With such a regulation, the German government wanted to go beyond the simple decriminalization that other countries have introduced. However, it was always considered uncertain whether the German project would be compatible with an EU framework decision. This obliges EU member states to criminalize the illegal trade in drugs such as cannabis. Following a visit to Brussels, Mr. Lauterbach recently reported very good feedback.

The Ministry of Health has declared to Spiegel that consultations on the planned bill had not yet been completed. Lauterbach wants to stick to «complete legalization».