Dutch weed ban for foreigners disregarded

Police in the southern Dutch city of Maastricht have given out their first warning after a ban came into force to prevent foreign tourists from buying cannabis at coffee shops.

The owner of one store has been reprimanded after selling the drug to customers without a “weed pass”. Non-residents aren’t eligible to obtain the pass.

But owner Marc Josemans says he’ll continue selling cannabis to foreigners without the pass.

Coffee shops in Amsterdam are currently exempt from the ban.

The Netherlands has been pressured by neighbours Germany and Belgium, both keen to prevent their own citizens buying cannabis so easily across the border.

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