International

Today’s ruling from the European Court of Justice (ECJ) authorising the issuance of a ‘cannabis pass’ entitling holders to buy limited quantities of cannabis in Maastricht’s coffee shops offers no real solution to the drug-related problem faced by border regions in the Netherlands. As things stand, anyone over 18 can buy limited quantities of soft drugs in the country’s so-called ‘coffee shops’, and the introduction of the pass, which will only be available to Dutch residents, is designed to put an end to drug-related tourism. SP-Euro-MP Dennis de Jonghas his doubts: ‘What’s needed now is a speedy proposal from the national authorities for effective regularisation and ultimately legalisation of cultivation and sale of soft drugs, instead of encouragement by the government of this false solution. A cannabis pass in Maastricht will simply lead to a ‘waterbed effect’, bouncing the problem from town to town and from the Coffeeshop to the street dealer.’

All of a sudden silence has descended around the euro. After a period in which government leaders and finance ministers were falling over each other to take the floor, most politicians have begun to hold their tongues. This has come about because they have quite simply agreed collectively to say nothing about the situation.