Tackling Belgium’s drug problem: Legalising cannabis is ‘common sense,’ says Economy Minister

A solution to the drug and security problem in Belgium's bigger cities, such as Brussels and Antwerp, could be legalising the sale and use of cannabis, according to Federal Economy and Employment Minister Pierre-Yves Dermagne.

The Federal Government has already allocated a budget of an extra €1 billion for the police and the justice department, but that figure might grow when the authorities have balanced the budget.

In any case, current resources must also be targeted "more effectively," Dermagne told De Morgen.

"When we talk about the drug problem in Belgium, a radical reform comes to mind: we have to consider the legalisation of cannabis," he said. "If you look at our neighbouring countries, three of the four have already done this today: the Netherlands, Luxembourg and recently Germany."

For Dermagne, "it no longer makes sense" to keep asking the police to endlessly prosecute cannabis users and put them in prison. "This repression does not work."