Coalition MP calls on Dutch justice minister to review ban on cannabis cultivation

Labour MP Marith Rebel said the government should listen to local councils who have asked to be allowed to regulate cannabis cultivation.

She called for justice minister Ivo Opstelten to drop his opposition to legalised cannabis production. Opstelten has threatened in the past to go to court to stop municipalities such as Utrecht from authorising cannabis growers.

The Liberal (VVD) minister has blocked all attempts to extend the current drugs laws in the Netherlands. Drugs are illegal but small quantities of soft drugs can be bought from licensed premises (‘coffeeshops’) under tightly regulated conditions.

Only people resident in the Netherlands are legally allowed to visit coffeeshops, but it is left to local mayors to decide whether the rule is enforced. In Amsterdam, which is home to around one-third of the cannabis cafes, tourists are still welcome, while Maastricht strictly enforces the ban on foreigners.

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