Germany ‘moving quickly’ with developments in adult-use and medical cannabis regulations

Germany will announce a bill to legalise adult-use cannabis in the next few weeks after receiving positive feedback from the European Commission on its proposals. Meanwhile, major changes are expected to its medical programme. 

German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) has said that a bill to legalise cannabis will be announced in the next few weeks.

He appears confident that his plans will be approved by the EU after he announced on Tuesday in Brussels that he had received ‘very good feedback’ from the European Commission.

In October, the Health Minister published draft proposals for the legalisation of adult-use cannabis in the country.

Under these laws cannabis citizens over the age of 18 would be free to carry up to 30g of cannabis for personal use, with consumption in public spaces permitted after 8pm. Consumers will also be permitted to grow up to three plants per person at home.

The government plans to take a public health approach to the legislation, with intervention programmes for young people and a focus on cannabis-related education. 

Lauterbach met with his EU counterparts following concerns that his proposals for cannabis reform may not be in keeping with European law.

According to local media reports, the feedback from the European Commission will now be used to develop new proposals which will be presented in the coming weeks. 

“We have now changed the original key issues paper,” said Lauterbach 

“We will soon present a proposal that works – that is, that conforms to European law.”

While no details have been shared yet, the new proposal is expected to conform to European law while also achieving the goals of the German government for example, reducing drug-related crime and offering more protection for young people. 

Opposition to the proposals

The proposals have been met with opposition from some German politicians.

Earlier this week, the Bavarian minister of health, Klaus Holetschek – from the opposition party Christian Social Union (CSU) – reportedly called on the government to acknowledge that it is on the ‘wrong track’ as it progresses with the plans for legalisation.

In its annual report published on 9 March, the United Nations International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) stated that the legalisation of non-medical cannabis is ‘inconsistent with the obligations contained in the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs’ which classified cannabis as highly addictive and liable to abuse.

The report cites data indicating that the trend for legalising adult-use cannabis has caused “negative health effects and psychotic disorders” among some consumers.

“In all jurisdictions where cannabis has been legalised, data show that cannabis-related health problems have increased,” INCB said. 

The panel has also expressed concern that the “growing” industry was fuelling the shift to even greater use of the drug, by advertising their products “particularly to young people, in ways that lower the perception of risk”.

Holetschek said: “The UN Drug Control Council has confirmed what we have been warning about for a long time: legalising cannabis for consumption purposes, as the German government is planning, would not dry up the black market and would also increase consumption among young people.”

Cause for optimism?

While it is still unclear what a regulated adult-use market in Germany might look like, experts believe that the opposition is unlikely to have much bearing, particularly with the apparent backing of the European Commission. 

Lawrence Purkiss, an industry analyst at Prohibition Partners, praised the government’s ‘proactive’ and ‘health-focused’ approach to adult-use regulations.

“It’s really positive that the European Commission appears to be on board with Germany’s plans for adult-use legalisation, because conforming with European law is the key legal obstacle for regulators to overcome in implementing this reform,” said Purkiss, speaking to Cannabis Health.

“We’re seeing things developing quickly now in Germany, both in adult-use and medical cannabis regulation.

“There is still a lot which the government needs to get right, but the proactive, health-focused approach to adult-use legalisation which it seems to be taking is certainly giving cause for optimism.

Major changes expected to medical cannabis framework

Meanwhile, an announcement from Germany’s Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) is expected on Thursday 16 March which could see major changes to the country’s medical cannabis framework.

The committee has proposed a number of changes to how medical cannabis is prescribed and reimbursed under the country’s statutory health insurance scheme.

According to reports from BusinessCann under the changes the approval process for having cannabis medication reimbursed by insurance companies will be significantly stricter. Patients may need to prove that they have tried other treatments before cannabis, and extracts are likely to be favoured over flower-based products.

The announcement will be available to live stream here .

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