German minister aims for cannabis legalization by spring

German minister aims for cannabis legalization by spring

Despite opposition within Germany's three-party governing coalition, Health Minister Karl Lauterbach still hopes to legalize cannabis by submitting a bill to parliament next month.

"I am continuing to assume that the Cannabis Act will be passed by the Bundestag in the week between February 19 and 23 and will go into force from April 1," Lauterbach told the Sunday edition of Die Welt daily newspaper, adding that talks on the legislation were going well.

What the law will allow

The coalition, which consists of the Social Democrats (SPD), including Lauterbach and Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the Greens and the pro-business liberals of the FDP, agreed at the end of November to remove cannabis from the list of prohibited substances in previous legislation. The goal of legalizing cannabis is included in the coalition agreement.