Limburg cannabis cafes to go members-only?

Monday 27 April 2009

All the cafes in Limburg which are licenced to sell small quantities of cannabis may be turned into members-only clubs in order to stop drugs tourism, the Volkskrant reported at the weekend.

The plan, the brainchild of Maastricht mayor Gerd Leers, is due to be formally presented next month.

The region's 30 plus cannabis cafes, known as coffee shops, attract thousands of tourists from France, Belgium and Germany every year.

Foreigners will not be banned from joining, but they will have to wait several days before they can buy cannabis products. This will discourage them from trying to buy marijuana, the plan's authors hope.

No cash

They are also considering banning cash sales, meaning all purchases could be traced, the paper says. This will also discourage foreign nationals from becoming members.

Leer's plans also include reducing the amount of cannabis which can be bought from five to three grammes. He believes few foreigners will be bothered to make the journey for such a small quantity, the Volkskrant states.

The paper says the home affairs and justice ministries have reacted favourably to the plan. Coffee shop owners say they want to wait until the formal presentation on May 12 to react.

© DutchNews.nl

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