Germany waters down plan to legalise cannabis after talks with Brussels

By introducing legislation that would permit private cultivation and distribution through nonprofit organizations but prohibit broad sales of the drug in stores, the German government on Wednesday scaled down its ambitions to legalize cannabis.

The law also calls for a pilot program to examine the impact of a commercial supply chain for recreational cannabis on public health, the protection of minors, and the black market in a select number of districts with regulated shops.

Also legalized would be the purchase and possession of recreational cannabis up to 25 grams for individual use.

“The old marijuana policy was ineffective. We must now take new paths “Karl Lauterbach, the minister of health, remarked.

The declaration on Wednesday follows discussions between Berlin and the European Commission on a cornerstone document that the German government released in October.

Health, Justice, and Agriculture, the three ministries engaged in developing the legislation, did not provide a timetable for the strategy.

Germany is one of many European nations that has already legalized cannabis for specific medical uses. Others have reduced the penalties for using it in general but have not legalized it.