Another EU Country Legalizes Weed, Top Gov. Official Calls Cannabis Criminalization 'A Failure'

Luxembourg became the second country in the European Union, following Malta, to legalize possession of recreational cannabis.

The country’s Parliament gave the legalization measure the green light on Wednesday; The Chamber of Deputies’ members approved the non-commercial legalization bill in a 38-22 vote, reported Marijuana Moment.

Under the measure proposed in 2021, those aged 18 and older can cultivate up to four cannabis plants per Luxembourg household. They can also possess up to three grams of marijuana for personal use in “the private sphere.”

However, possessing more than the permitted quantity could result in a prison sentence of up to six months.

In addition, public consumption and transport of cannabis and cannabis products as well as trade-in cannabis products other than seeds, remain prohibited.

Minister of Justice Sam Tanson called the criminalization of cannabis “an absolute failure,” adding that “we must dare to take another path” and “seek solutions.”

He explained earlier what’s the motive behind the marijuana policy change.

“The idea is that a consumer is not in an illegal situation if he consumes cannabis and that we don’t support the whole illegal chain from production to transportation to selling where there is a lot of misery attached,” Tanson said. “We want to do everything we can to get more and more away from the illegal black market.”

Photo: Benzinga edit of images by Kym MacKinnon and Christian Wiediger on Unsplash