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Minister of Health Lauterbach on January 5th
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ANDREAS GORA/POOL/EPA
The FDP is pushing the pace with the planned cannabis legalization.
"We want a bill accordingly as soon as possible," said the health policy spokesman for the FDP parliamentary group, Andrew Ullmann, the "Tagesspiegel".
According to Ullmann, the controlled release of cannabis for recreational purposes has been set as the goal of the coalition.
One cannot "wait forever for us to get advance signals from Europe before we finally take legislative action," said Ullmann.
The path of the traffic light coalition is "legal and legitimate" and will also exist in Europe, said the FDP politician.
A week ago, the green health expert Kirsten Kappert-Gonther promptly called for a draft law.
The federal cabinet had already decided on the key points for Health Minister Karl Lauterbach's (SPD) project last year:
Cannabis and the active ingredient tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) should therefore no longer be legally classified as narcotics in the future.
The acquisition and possession of up to 30 grams of "pleasure cannabis" should be free of punishment, and private cultivation allowed to a limited extent.
In addition, sales to adults in "licensed specialist shops" and possibly also pharmacies should be possible.
Since then, however, the project seems to have stalled.
Lauterbach initially wanted to submit his law to the EU Commission to ensure compatibility with EU law.
According to the "Tagesspiegel", the federal government has not yet started the so-called notification procedure in Brussels, which is why there has not yet been an examination under European law.
It is therefore still possible that the Commission will veto the German plans because it sees a violation of EU and international law.
Is the dispute about AKW running times flaring up again?
The continued operation of the last three remaining German nuclear power plants should also keep the coalition partners busy.
FDP General Secretary Bijan Djir-Sarai told the dpa news agency that the debate had to be objective and based on facts.
“The last word has not been spoken here.
It's about the energy security and supply of our country," said Djir-Sarai.
The debate cannot yet be declared over.
Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) had rejected calls from the FDP for the continued operation of nuclear power plants in Germany after mid-April.
From his point of view, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has “finally” decided that the nuclear power plants will be used this winter and not beyond.
Actually, the three remaining nuclear power plants should have gone offline on December 31st.
Because of the energy crisis as a result of the Ukraine war, Scholz extended its term until April 15th.
fek/dpa
