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The groups that form Germany’s coalition government struck a deal last week on cannabis legalization, setting the stage for the new law to take effect in the spring. 

Now, the proposal will be considered by the country’s parliament, with a vote expected later this month.

Zeit, a German publication, reported last week that the “government coalition made up of the SPD, Greens and FDP has agreed on the details of the legalization of cannabis,” and that the “law could come into force on April 1st, but must first be approved by the Bundestag and Bundesrat.” 

According to the outlet, Karl Lauterbach, Germany’s federal health minister, “is aiming for approval in parliament in the week from February 19th to 23rd.”

In a post on X last week, Lauterbach hailed the agreement by the groups within the coalition.

“The fight against the black market, decriminalization and better protection of minors will come as announced. The previous drug policy has failed, a new beginning,” Lauterbach said.

The agreement keeps the country on course that the so-called “Traffic Light coalition” laid out late last year. 

In November, the SPD, Greens and FDP said they had reached a breakthrough in their negotiations of the new cannabis law. 

“The #Cannabis law is coming! Finally: We are finally ending the failed ban policy! After intensive negotiations, there is now a law that focuses on youth and health protection, ends criminalization and is practical,” the Green Party’s spokesperson Kirsten Kappert-Gonther said in a post on social media at the time.

According to Forbes, the “path to legalization in Germany has encountered several hurdles,” including the coalition government having to “revise its plan, which initially involved the sale of cannabis, as it risked breaching EU laws.” Forbes reported that the coalition also “confronted criticism from opposition parties seeking to obstruct the proposed legislation,” as well as “internal dissent within the government, particularly from the SPD, emerged regarding the details of the bill.”

The outlet Legal Tribune Online said that the agreement last week signaled that “resistance from the ranks of the SPD parliamentary group against the Cannabis Act (CanG) has apparently been overcome.”

Late last year, Legal Tribune Online reported that “health politician Dirk Heidenblut MdB, who is responsible for the issue of cannabis in the SPD parliamentary group, announced over the weekend via social media that the final reading of the Cannabis Act (CanG), which was actually planned for the last week of the year, was taking place. does not come about.” 

“The reason: The leadership of his SPD parliamentary group expressed concerns about the set-up. The avowed legalization friend explained in a video that he could not understand this, but the implementation would now be postponed until next year. Heidenblut did not want to reveal any further details,” the outlet reported at the time. “The short-term veto of the SPD parliamentary group against the final resolution surprised not only the so-called cannabis community, but also the coalition partners.”

Kappert-Gonther said at the time that it was “extremely unfortunate that cannabis is not on the agenda so far,” and that passage of the reform “would have been possible.”

But last week’s agreement by the parties indicates that those disagreements have been resolved, and that Germany is now set to enter a new era of cannabis legalization.

In a statement, the leaders of the coalition said that the “regulations are a real milestone for a modern drug policy that strengthens prevention and improves health, child and youth protection,” as quoted by Legal Tribune Online.

According to Forbes, the agreement “clears the path for the legalization of cannabis for personal use, aligning with the impending vote,” and that, absent any additional delays, “Germany is poised to become the third European Union member state to legalize cannabis for personal use, following Malta and Luxembourg.”

“For the government coalition, the legalization of cannabis for personal use marks a significant milestone in modern drug policy, emphasizing prevention and improving health and child and youth protection,” Forbes reported. “However, the proposed legislation, introduced last year by Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach, may undergo additional slight revisions to address concerns raised by the SPD, potentially involving the expansion and acceleration of monitoring and reporting obligations related to the illicit market.”

Forbes said that lawmakers “recently revised the bill to ease restrictions opposed by advocates and supporters in the Bundestag,” with changes including “raising home possession limits and eliminating the possibility of jail time for slightly exceeding the possession limit.”

“The government coalition also plans to introduce a complementary measure establishing pilot programs for commercial sales, set to be revealed after submission to the European Commission,” Forbes said, adding that, if the proposal passes the parliament in the next two months as expected, the ban on pot will be lifted by April 1, and that adults will be able to “grow cannabis at home and possess small quantities, while cannabis clubs will be allowed from July 1.”

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On May 8, the Colombian Chamber of Representatives passed a cannabis legalization bill. In the sixth of eight discussions, the bill was passed with a 98-57 vote. In Colombia, legislative acts require eight debates, and in the most recent discussion, it needed 95 votes to move forward.

Rep. Juan Carlos Losada Vargas, who is also the bill’s sponsor, shared the news on Twitter on May 9. “#HISTÓRICO Approved with 98 votes our project of #CannabisDeUsoAdulto in 6th debate. Today @CamaraColombia It shows that we are a country that wants to change the failed prohibitionist drug policy to one based on prevention and public health,” Vargas wrote on Twitter.

The bill would create a regulatory framework for legal cannabis both for adults as well as for scientific purposes. “The purpose of this Draft Legislative Act is to allow the regularization of the use of cannabis by adults, as well as the unification of the current regulations regarding the use of cannabis for scientific use, as long as the established requirements are met,” a translated excerpt of the bill text states. “The foregoing in order to recognize and guarantee the fundamental rights to equality and the free development of personality, unify the constitutional, legal and jurisprudential references on the matter and propose a different strategy to combat illegal cannabis trafficking, as a tactic to reduce violence in the country.”

The bill also supports the creation of public education campaigns and substance abuse programs.

Vargas published op-ed pieces in late March and April where he discussed the history of cannabis efforts in Colombia and how proper regulation will save lives. “Five years ago, when we first brought the cannabis discussion to Congress, we were completely certain that, in a legislative body with conservative majorities, it was virtually impossible to pass a bill of this nature; however, simultaneously with an assured defeat, we always had the conviction that one day—much sooner rather than later—our project was going to go ahead,” Vargas wrote in March. “Well, it looks like that day has come.”

In April, the Chamber of Representatives had discussed cannabis on five occasions. “Passing five debates shows that this Congress, supported by the will of millions of Colombians who went to the polls, demonstrates that it is ready to take a step towards a new drug policy that abandons the failed paradigm of prohibition and opens the field for it to a policy guided by the guidelines of public health, the prevention of consumption and the guarantee of citizens’ rights,” Vargas wrote in April. “We are very little away from starting to write a new history in the fight against drugs, at this point it is a matter of political will. Every vote is decisive.”

The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration, for the last two discussions. If passed, it would be sent to Colombian President Gustavo Petro. 

In the past, Petro has confirmed support and interest in ending the War on Drugs. Last year he explained how he will strive to allow Colombian people to live in peace. In November, Petro met with Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to discuss “geopolitical, commercial, cultural and development cooperation.” In a joint statement, they announced their goal for change. “Recognizing the failure of the fight against drugs and the vulnerability of our peoples in the face of this problem, Mexico and Colombia will convene an International Conference of Latin American leaders with the objective of redesigning and rethinking drug policy,” both presidents said in their statement.

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Missouri’s medical dispensaries will start recreational sales on Monday, Feb. 6. Here’s the easiest way to find your new local weed store.

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Smacked Village owner Roland Conner is New York’s first dispensary owner with a cannabis conviction. After his new pop-up store becomes permanent, Conner plans to pass the store down to his son.

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At the Cookies grand opening in Bangkok, Thailand over the weekend, Leafly hung out with locals, tourists, and operators to see how the country became a leader in Asia’s cannabis revolution.

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We were 74% right about 2022. Just sayin’.

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Meet four of New York’s first weed store owners, and learn why the state called them the cream of the crop among 900 license applicants.

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The US Olympian said she plans to return to the WNBA and help fight for the release of other cannabis prisoners, including US Marine Paul Whelan, who is still detained in Russia.

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Five stores opened on Dec. 1, with stocked shelves and eager shoppers. Here’s how it happened.

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