The Federal Council is discussing the cannabis law. The Minister of Health fears that people will “starve to death”. What is it about? And can countries actually prevent the legalization of the drug?
The most important things at a glance
The states could delay cannabis legalization in the Federal Council almost forever. They complain that the planned amnesty would overwhelm their judiciary. But is that true? And won’t smoking weed become legal after all?
In politics, sometimes just a few words are enough to turn things upside down. Saxony’s Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer achieved this at the beginning of the week: “My goal is that the law never leaves the VA again,” wrote Kretschmer on Platform X. The CDU politician didn’t even spell out the word “mediation committee”. But the sentence was enough to set alarm bells ringing in Berlin. Above all, that of Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD).
By “law” Kretschmer meant the partial legalization of cannabis recently passed by the Bundestag. Lauterbach wants this to come into force on April 1st. But now he fears for this goal. The law is “on a knife edge” and could “starve to death” in the mediation committee, the minister said on Monday in the ARD program “Hart aber fair”.
The Federal Council wants to discuss the law on Friday. Numerous federal states have already expressed their opposition to the current version. Lauterbach’s concern: The council could block the law for months by calling on the mediation committee and thus prevent legalization in the last few meters. What is the dispute about? And could the Federal Council really “starve” the law? t-online provides answers.
Why is the Federal Council even dealing with the law?
In Germany, every law passed by the Bundestag must also be passed by the Bundesrat. The Council must explicitly agree to around half of them – so-called laws requiring approval – otherwise they will not come into effect. This is not the case with cannabis legalization. However, the council can delay the law. And this is not at all unlikely: Cannabis legalization is a thorn in the side of the CDU and CSU in particular. And state governments under the leadership or participation of the Union have a majority in the council.
How could the Federal Council delay cannabis legalization?
In order to prevent the law from coming into force on April 1st as planned, the council would have to convene the mediation committee to clarify the disputes between the federal and state governments. There are 16 members each from the Bundestag and the Bundesrat.
The committee can propose changes or even the repeal of the entire law. The Bundestag will then first decide on the proposals. If he agrees with them, the amended law goes back to the council. If it rejects it, the council will have to deal again with the original version of the law.
Video | Two t-online users argue the pros and cons of cannabis legalization:
Quelle: t-online
Only then, at the second consultation, could the Federal Council object to legalization. The Bundestag could overrule this, which would bring the law into force. This would also be the case if there was no majority in the Council in favor of an objection.
Could the law really “starve” in the Mediation Committee?
But Lauterbach doesn’t want to let it get that far. He has already drawn up a protocol declaration that provides for changes to the law. In doing so, he wants to accommodate the countries. Because the crux of the impending blockade is: While the Bundestag and Bundesrat have tight deadlines for deliberating laws, the Mediation Committee has no guidelines for this. This also explains Kretschmer’s threat that the law could never leave the committee again. Theoretically, it would be conceivable that the committee would simply not meet at all. Or, should he come together, not put cannabis legalization on the agenda.
