The sale and cultivation of cannabis as well as the possession of small amounts of the drug for personal use have been declared lawful in Germany.
Karl Lauterbach, the minister of health, announced that possession of up to 1oz of the substance will be lawful as a result of a proposal that the cabinet approved on Wednesday, October 26.
“If this law comes to pass, it would be the most liberal project to legalize cannabis in Europe, but also the most regulated market”, the German health minister, Karl Lauterbach, said at a press conference in Berlin on Wednesday. “It could be a model for Europe.”
The Social Democrat lawmaker stated that the main objective of legalizing cannabis in Germany was to better protect young people who were already using the drug in increasing numbers after obtaining it on the illegal market.
“We don’t want to expand cannabis consumption but to improve the protection of youth and health”, Lauterbach said. With around 4 million people in Germany having tried cannabis at least once over the last 12 months, he added, the current prohibitive model “isn’t working”.
Adults will be able to purchase cannabis from authorized locations, and Mr. Lauterbach added that the market would be strictly controlled.
According to Mr. Lauterbach, legalization will take place if Brussels provides the go-ahead.
When it took office at the end of the year, the three-party coalition of Chancellor Olaf Scholz proclaimed its intention to legalize cannabis for recreational use. However, the law’s passage has been hindered by concerns that such a move might violate EU law and international treaties.
