Up in smoke: What's next for Germany's legalisation of cannabis?
A new report shows that the partial legalisation of marijuana a year and a half ago hasn't had the effect the last government had hoped for.
Dear Reader,
A year and a half ago, Germany joined the likes of Spain and the Netherlands in partially legalising marijuana. While it wasn’t suddenly possible to light up a casual joint in a café à la Amsterdam, Germany established a series of “cannabis social clubs” (or non-commercial associations) where up to 500 pre-approved adult members could cultivate and consume the psychoactive substance under a strict set of rules.
People aged 18 and over were permitted to possess a maximum of 50 grams at home and 25 grams in public, as long as they smoked a sizeable distance from schools and playgrounds — unlike with cigarettes.
The controversial law came into force in April 2024 under the then-traffic light coalition (centre-left SPD, Greens and liberal FDP), largely to clamp down on the black market and reduce the health risks caused by exposure to unregulated drugs.
But an interim report released this week failed to find evidence that it has choked off the market for drug gangs, and that cannabis use among adults has continued to rise. Cannabis currently on the market is also being sold with a higher potency.
On the other hand, the new legal framework has not resulted in a surge in use among young people - as several centre-right CDU politicians had feared. In fact, Germany’s youth have steadily consumed less cannabis every year since 2019, according to the report.
What’s the reaction been?
The centre-right CDU wasted no time in seizing on the findings, calling them proof that Germany’s cannabis law has barely dented consumption while making matters worse. For conservatives, the partial legalisation is a textbook case of Verschlimmbesserung — trying to fix a problem only to make it bigger.
“The share of imports and the black market for medical cannabis has increased — developments that show the law has so far failed to meet its goals,” said Federal Drug Commissioner Hendrik Streeck (CDU) in the Rheinische Post. He blamed the “excessively high” possession limits and generous home-grow rules, which allow people to cultivate up to three plants.
CSU parliamentary leader Alexander Hoffmann struck a similar note, arguing the reform has “done a disservice to youth protection and road safety,” with more drivers under the influence, and cannabis more visible than ever in public spaces.
“Addiction problems, especially among young people, continue to increase,” he warned. “Kiffen (slang for smoking weed) in public has reached a level that even schoolchildren can’t avoid.”
Not everyone agrees. SPD lawmaker Carmen Wegge countered that legalisation was a “right and long-overdue step,” one that decriminalises users, strengthens prevention, and frees police and courts from chasing minor possession cases. She admitted, though, that red tape around cannabis clubs and plant growing needs fixing.
Joining a club requires reams of paperwork and plant-tracking, while home growers face strict rules on counts, storage, and security — with even small slip-ups risking legal trouble.
Green Party deputy Misbah Khan added in Der Spiegel that partial legalisation “has not had any dramatic negative effects on our society,” while Die Linke (Left Party) health politician Ates Gürpinar said scare tactics “once again prove to be unfounded.”
Both conceded, however, that the thicket of rules — for both clubs and home cultivation — is tripping up users and authorities alike.
What comes next?
The CDU/SPD coalition has promised an “open-ended evaluation” of the cannabis law this autumn — so the future is still shrouded in smoke.
There is also a draft amendment under discussion regarding medical cannabis: it would impose tighter restrictions around prescriptions, revisit mail-order dispensing, and increase in-person requirements.
In general, many health experts want to tighten the rules further, with lower possession limits, stricter regulations for social clubs, and tougher enforcement to protect children and public health.
But others say the opposite is true: Germany’s problem isn’t too much freedom, it’s too much red tape. A simpler, more transparent system, they argue, could finally undercut the black market, make cannabis safer for consumers, and let regulators focus on prevention and education instead of ploughing through paperwork.
The German Review’s take:
Whether joining a ‘social club’ or cultivating your own Mary Jane, there are so many hoops to jump through in Germany’s current system that many regular users simply can’t be bothered. They are then likely to turn to — or stay in — the black market.
And what will they find there (other than perhaps shady sellers loitering in Berlin’s Mauerpark)? A stronger, unregulated substance that is riskier than anything the government allows.
Germany could take a tip from other countries and states that seem to have got cannabis legalisation right. In Uruguay, adults can buy cannabis from government-licensed pharmacies or registered social clubs, which are not excessively strict to join, but still require IDs and background checks.
Similarly, in Canada, straightforward access via licensed stores and online platforms has allowed regulators to focus on prevention, education, and harm reduction, rather than putting all their energy into policing illegal sales or paperwork.
Even in my native California, adults can walk into a dispensary with ease in many cities — and yet the share of people using cannabis has not risen dramatically since legalisation. The Bundesrepublik would likewise benefit from less bureaucracy, not more, to bring cannabis under control.
News in Brief
✈️ German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) has proposed a law to allow the Bundeswehr to shoot down drones in “exceptional cases,” when the Defense Ministry considers them an acute threat. The move follows repeated incidents of unidentified drones in Germany, most recently the spotting of a “swarm” of drones over the northernmost state of Schleswig-Holstein, raising concerns about potential risks to people and critical infrastructure. Dobrindt didn’t give details on who is responsible, but Berlin has long put the blame on Russia for carrying out surveillance and espionage operations. Currently state police handle drone sightings, and the Police Union has warned the plan blurs military and police responsibilities. Chancellor Friedrich Merz emphasised that it’s most important that decisive action is quickly taken against such threats, which are coming at a time when Germany is debating when and how to buff up its military infrastructure.
🗳️ In Sunday’s run-off elections in cities in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), the SPD lost Dortmund to the CDU for the first time in nearly 80 years, with CDU candidate Alexander Omar Kalouti narrowly defeating the long-standing SPD incumbent. While SPD managed to retain Cologne, its overall performance fell sharply. Meanwhile, the CDU held its ground in several contested municipalities. Far-right AfD candidates made gains in vote share and qualified for run-offs in cities like Gelsenkirchen, Duisburg, and Hagen -- but failed to win any mayor seats. SPD leaders expressed frustration, acknowledging the need to reconnect with voters on pressing issues such as immigration, crime, and public safety. For the AfD, the results were bittersweet: though it didn’t win key offices, its increased support signals growing influence in Germany’s most populous state -- and nationwide.
🚆 The Swiss are again annoyed at the Germans for tampering with their almost perfectly punctual trains. The canton of Schaffhausen is mulling measures to address persistent delays and cancellations of Deutsche Bahn (DB) trains. In an open letter to Vincent Ducrot, CEO of Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), the canton proposed splitting the Stuttgart–Zurich route into two segments. Under this plan, trains from Stuttgart would terminate in Singen, just north of the Swiss border, with passengers transferring to another train to continue their journey to Zurich. This proposal follows similar actions by other cantons, including the border city of Basel, which have previously curtailed DB train services due to (bad) timing issues.
Members’ corner
A German pro-life rally in the shadow of the Kirk murder
-- Gesturing toward the counter-protest, he said: “They are all socialists. They should be banned.” It was the first clear culture-war rhetoric I had heard all day. At least from the pro-life side. --
‘The school system in Germany is still quite unequal’
-- Germany continues to grow more diverse, and that’s especially apparent in the classroom: nearly a third of all Schüler (students) have a migrant background, meaning that either they, or at least one of their parents, come from another country. --
Sincerely,
Rachel Stern
The government needs to decide if profits or social benefits are more important than the other.
Can't have both. Wanting the profit margin of the black market while legalising dope is, as far as the consumer is concerned, is like giving the mafia your home address when buying your drugs on the black market.
Buying cheap regulated dope while having to register has a beneficial trade off for the user.
Given all the red tape and difficulty in joining a club or ordering online with ID for medical cannabis, often at black market price points... Staying in the black market is simply more convenient.
Morality or any other considerations are misguided. Also, cannabis isn't addictive like alcohol or heroin. There is a possibility of psychological dependency, same as with AI chatbots, or people we love, or pets. Is that a problem?