At the end of last week, the Dutch Commission for Public Order and Security met during a debate entitled “Combating crime, personal injury and organized crime” in the presence of the Minister of Justice Dilan Yeşilgöz -Zegerius.
Various questions relating to the experimentation with the legal production of cannabis in the Netherlands, which is lagging behind, or the legalization of cannabis in Germany were asked of him.
The Minister thus specified that the 11th city to join the experiment had not yet been designated. However, two major cities have reportedly expressed interest. The balance would tip for one of the two cities whose mayor is currently discussing with local stakeholders. The decision will be announced this fall.
She also confirmed that she was studying the possibilities of launching the production experiment for coffeeshops as soon as possible in response to the recent call from the mayors of Breda and Tilburg.
“A number of mayors have indeed floated the idea of an earlier start-up phase to gain experience on a small scale. And we, that is to say Minister Kuipers and myself, are in the process of exploring the possibilities available to us and the support of the stakeholders in this regard. Myself, from my role, I have always said: “I am pragmatic in relation to all this experience”. We have clear agreements in the coalition agreement. It seems wise to me to comply with it. […] But I don’t want to develop new problems. […] I know that this delay is causing great irritation among a number of members of the chamber, so it seems fair to me to add that this delay is not a postponement anyway. »
She also clarified that for now, each grower must wait until all growers are ready to go before delivering their products to coffeeshops. Producers who are ready earlier will not receive financial compensation for the delay.
For coffeeshop owners, a later start currently means that they will be dependent on back door supply for longer and cannot yet offer legal cannabis in their coffeeshop.
The addition of an eleventh city will in any case not delay the launch of the experiment.
Asked if she was following developments in Germany, Dilan Yesilgöz Zegerius confirmed that she was observing what was happening there. However, it is impossible to predict to what extent the Dutch cannabis market will be affected. It will also depend on how legalization takes shape in Germany, which is currently completely undetermined.
“However, it will be interesting to follow the impact of legalization in Germany on drug tourism in the Netherlands,” she added.
