Dutch councils vie to produce cannabis in bid to cut out criminals
Netherlands trial is designed to stop gangs from supplying cannabis-selling coffee shops
Wednesday, December 27, 2017
At least 30 companies want to get into the legal production of cannabis in the Netherlands, according to Paul Depla, the mayor of Breda, whose council is among two dozen vying to take part in government-backed trials designed to cut criminals out of supplying cannabis-selling coffee shops. Dutch coffee shops are allowed to sell small amounts of the drug to over-18s, yet production is illegal, leaving an opportunity for gangs also involved in harder drugs to prosper. Depla said the current system was "bankrupt". "This is all about the problem of the back door of the coffee shops," he said. "Production now is dominated by organised crime syndicates. We have got a bankrupt system." (See also: Pass the Dutchie: New Netherlands coalition government backs legalized cannabis production — finally)
