A motion from The Hague City Party, carried by municipal councilor Fatima Faïd, was tabled at the end of December, asking the municipality to “get to work” to participate in the production experiment legal cannabis for coffeeshops. The motion was adopted by the municipal council by a majority of votes, reports CannabisIndustrie.nl.
The “Join weed trial” motion adopted by the municipal council
The Hague City Party website justifies the motion in these terms:
“Dutch soft drugs policy is now hopelessly lagging behind. Building tolerance leads to very crazy situations where the front – the coffee shop – is regulated but the back – the production line – is not. The National Cannabis Trial is changing that.
So far, only small municipalities participate. One city missing from the G-4 [ndlr: les 4 grandes villes des Pays-Bas : Rotterdam, Amsterdam, La Haye et Utrecht]. A legislative amendment is even being developed so that neighborhoods in large cities can also participate. The next one is expected to be Amsterdam Zuidoost. We believe that as the municipality of The Hague we should also participate.
With the adoption of our motion, the mayor must begin discussions with coffeeshops in The Hague to determine whether they are ready to participate in the trial. As the City of The Hague party, we are in favor of this participation, because the legalization of soft drugs allows for a better understanding of the production chain and how cultivation is carried out. »
According to Gezal Karabekir, group representative for The Hague City Party: “By participating in an experiment on legal cannabis, we are clearly showing the city's residents that we care about their health. »
The text of the motion is as follows:
” Considering that :
The central government is launching a trial with a closed coffeeshop chain – that is, legal cannabis cultivation; no G4 city is yet participating in this trial
Considering that :
The Hague's coffee shops meet an important societal need; legalizing the supply of coffee shops can lead to a reduction in nuisance and crime; the interests of The Hague coffee shops are represented by the umbrella organization of The Hague coffee shops; the legalization of cannabis cultivation gives the consumer more control over the quality of the product; the central government will also allow G4 cities to participate in the trial with one or more city districts; asks the municipal executive to start discussions with coffeeshops in The Hague and, if coffeeshop owners in the city or district are in favor of participating in the trial with a legal production line for coffeeshops, 'indicate to the State that they are open to participation in this trial or any follow-up initiatives that may arise from it.
And move on to the agenda. »
Previous discussions
At the start of 2022, De Telegraaf reported that the government had discussed with the municipality of The Hague about possible participation in the cannabis trial as the eleventh city. It turned out to be the Amsterdam-Oost district.
In 2019, the municipality indicated that it found “the conditions insufficiently feasible” after consulting the owners of the city’s coffee shops.
