The news is in, German lawmakers have said yes to horse traded legislation.
Let’s see what’s being said
Business of Cannabis write
In a milestone moment for European cannabis, Germany has officially passed its cannabis bill following months of intense debate and a number of holdups.
Germany’s CanG bill was voted through the Bundestag today after a long and troubled political journey, meaning the possession of up to 50 grams of cannabis for personal consumption will now be legalized… on paper.
While the cannabis industry and the bill’s political proponents have rightly hailed this as a landmark achievement, the bill is not yet home and dry.
CanG will still have to be approved by the Bundesrat, which doesn’t have the power to block the bill entirely, but could enable the bill’s growing list of opponents to delay its rollout.
What happened?
This afternoon, the German parliament held the second and final readings of the CanG bill. After an expected lively debate, CanG was passed with 406 voting in favor, and 226 voting against.
You can read our live Twitter summary of the debate as it happened here.
The Federal Minister for Health, Karl Lauterbach, began today’s debate by laying out the core goals of the bill, to stop the black market and ensure the public safety of Germany’s youth.
Reiterating that the current policy is not working, citing a 50% increase in cannabis consumption, Mr Lauterbach said ‘we are putting our heads in the sand’, but this bill would see Germany ‘tackle the problems head on’.
Compared to previous debates, the arguments focused more heavily on the issues surrounding the black market and the staggering number of prosecutions related to cannabis, and less on the protection of health.
While impassioned arguments were made on both sides of the aisle, they stayed fairly neatly along party lines.
The bills’ usual opponents, the CDU/CSU and the AfD, both of which put forward an amendment for the bill to be blocked, made the usual arguments against the bill.
The CDU/CSU’s Stephan Pilsinger called the current government a farce, alleging that they only focus on cannabis and gender policies, adding that while working on a psychiatric ward, he saw the damage cannabis could cause to the youth.
In a dramatic exchange, a member of the FDP highlighted an article from 2017 in which Mr Pilsinger was promoting his own beer brewery, stating: ‘You only live once!’.
To laughter and applause from the Bundestag, Mr Pilsinger was asked why he can be liberal for one drug when it pleases him but not another.
In defiant response, he asked what drug would be next to be legalized, LSD or cocaine. As a parting statement, Mr Pilsinger suggested that his party was going to win the next election and make cannabis illegal once again.
Read industry reactions here
Here’s the MJ Biz report
The law – approved in the Bundestag by a 407-226 vote – generally decriminalizes cannabis, allows for home growing and lays the legal groundwork for so-called “cultivation social clubs” – nonprofit organizations where members can acquire marijuana for recreational use.
- The possession of up to 25 grams (0.9 ounces) in public and 50 grams at home.
- The private cultivation of up to three plants at home.
- Adults will be allowed to grow cannabis in social clubs together.
- Members will be entitled to up to 50 grams per month from cannabis clubs.
“The new law is only a partial legalization because it’s far away from complete legalization,” Grubwinkler added….For example, he noted, there will be no points of sale.
The law – approved in the Bundestag by a 407-226 vote – generally decriminalizes cannabis, allows for home growing and lays the legal groundwork for so-called “cultivation social clubs” – nonprofit organizations where members can acquire marijuana for recreational use.
The law is expected to go into effect April 1, but it still needs to be read in the Bundesrat, the upper house of Parliament.
The Bundesrat will examine the bill, but its “consent” – which is different from approval – is not required.
If the upper house convenes the Mediation Committee, however, meeting the April deadline is less likely.
Niklas Kouparanis, co-founder and CEO of Bloomwell Group, a German cannabis company, told MJBizDaily the country is ushering in a new era of progressive drug policy.
But the new law is expected to have a limited economic impact – at least in the adult-use market.
“Some suppliers will be able to sell the clubs equipment and material, provide services or rent property and facilities for the clubs,” Kouparanis said.
“But aside from these sorts of ancillary activities, new business opportunities from the cannabis clubs will be very limited.”
Read full report
ICBC write
According to the recently passed bill, adults in Germany will be able to cultivate up to three plants in private for personal use. Personal cultivation is expected to create considerable opportunities for companies that specialize in cultivation-related products and services such as seeds, grow lights, plant nutrients, harvesting equipment, odor control, and drying equipment.
In addition to being able to cultivate cannabis, adults in Germany will be able to possess a personal amount of cannabis. The possession limit will reportedly be set at 25 grams for adults when they are away from their private residence, and 50 grams at their private residence.
In addition to the expressed legal possession limit, penalties for possessing slightly more than the legal threshold will be considered an ‘administrative violation’ rather than a criminal offense yielding jail time.
Cannabis will be removed from Germany’s Narcotics List once the new law is implemented, marking a significant shift in German cannabis policy. The de-listing of cannabis will improve safe access for medical cannabis patients by removing various hurdles in the medical cannabis supply chain and streamlining processes for pharmacies. Cannabis research will be easier to pursue, and academic institutions may begin to receive national and/or EU-provided funds for specific research projects.
Noncommercial cannabis clubs are expected to launch as early as July 1, 2024, as part of the measure. Membership-based noncommercial clubs, from which adult consumers can legally source their cannabis, will be subjected to various regulations. Consumers will also be able to purchase seeds and clones from noncommercial clubs.
One of the sticking points leading up to today’s successful vote was the implementation of noncommercial clubs, and part of the coalition’s compromise is to reportedly stagger the implementation date.
Full report
Marijuana Moment
AP
