By Luke Sumpter


The tiny European nation of Luxembourg has taken a big step in becoming the second country in the EU to legalize recreational cannabis, following Malta’s daring move in 2021[1].

Deputies of the Luxembourg government approved bill 8033[2] on Wednesday, 28th of June, with 38 voting for and 22 against. The new legislation will allow adults to legally grow up to four plants at home in a secure location and possess up to three grams in public.

Sam Tanson, Minister of Justice, celebrated the approval, calling the previous drug policy “an absolute failure” and stating: “We must dare to take another path”. Member of Parliament Dan Diancalana also weighed in, commenting: “The consumption ban has not stopped people from using cannabis. It is a fact that the purely repressive approach has remained a failure so far”.

Cannabis Reform: Luxembourg Legalizes Home Cultivation
Cannabis Reform: Luxembourg Legalizes Home Cultivation

Despite Luxembourg’s small population size of just over 640,000, a 2019 report[3] showed that 23% of citizens between the ages of 15 and 64 have used cannabis. Ministers hope that homegrown herb will give users access to superior products and reduce dependency on the black market. Once published, the new legislation could allow citizens to start growing legally as early as July this year.

Freedom to Grow: What Will It Look Like in Luxembourg?

Bill 8033 will allow home growers to relax while tending to their plants. However, they’ll still need to abide by specific cultivation guidelines. The new legislation means growers are only allowed to raise plants from seeds. This forbids any form of tissue culture, including cloning, that dedicated hobbyists use to overcome genetic diversity in plants and hold on to specific phenotypes.

Growers must also ensure that plants are concealed from public view[4]. This rules out balconies and some exposed gardens as legal cultivation locations. Citizens must only grow in their permanent home, which closes the potential loophole of cultivators growing more than four plants across multiple locations.

Bill 8033 Maintains Stringent Cannabis Penalties

The new legislation provides groundbreaking liberties but still enforces strict penalties[5] for breaches. Cannabis users that smoke the herb outside of their home risk a fine of up to €500. Those who buy, possess, or transport more than three grams face a maximum punishment of up to six months in prison and a fine of up to €2,500.

Stringent cannabis penalties will stay
Stringent cannabis penalties will stay

The freedom to grow up to four plants and possess a small quantity of cannabis doesn’t quite qualify as legalization to some, including the director of the National Centre of Addiction Prevention, Elena Bienfait. “It is not legalisation, it is regulation”, commented Bienfait, adding, “It is very different and we must not confuse the two”.

Bienfait holds the position[6] that true legalization cannot occur without employing systematic and structured prevention. However, lawmakers have considered general public safety in the new legislation; sales will be tightly controlled through licenced dispensaries, and education campaigns will promote responsible use.

Several Political Parties Remain Dissatisfied for Different Reasons

Despite celebration from some political figures, numerous political parties and leaders are displeased with the approved bill. Deputy and member of the Christian People’s Social Party Gilles Roth stated[7]: “The signal to the youth is that drug use is not bad”, adding, “It is an experiment with us and our health, the long-term consequences are not considered”.

In contrast, MP Marc Goergen of the Pirate Party believes the bill doesn’t achieve enough, branding it “false legalisation” that fails to liberate the herb properly. Goergen expressed[8]: “We can debate it for hours, but the fact is that cannabis is consumed daily”.

From left to right: Gilles Roth, Sam Tanson and Marc Goergen
From left to right: Gilles Roth, Sam Tanson and Marc Goergen

Bill 8033 Builds From Past Progress

This new reform, although too much for some and not enough for others, has emerged from Luxembourg’s legislative evolution surrounding cannabis. Let’s take a look at what pushed cannabis laws in the country to this point:

  • 2021: This year saw the initial development of the content within bill 8033. In October of 2021, the government announced[9] plans to overhaul the nation’s approach to recreational cannabis use and cultivation.
  • 2017: The government launched a pilot project for medical cannabis. In November of that year, health minister Lydia Mutsch announced[10]: “The medical use of cannabis can reduce pain and suffering in patients, who don’t respond to the usual treatment anymore”. She went on to discuss the roles of THC and CBD in assisting certain illnesses.

Luxembourg Cannabis Policy Is Moving in the Right Direction

Bill 8033 has given the citizens of Luxembourg a breath of fresh air. People can soon freely grow cannabis plants at home without the threat of prosecution, provided they adhere to the strict regulations at play. The new legislation also gives them the right to possess small amounts of the herb.

However, the new laws leave much to be desired by some. Several political voices fear the widespread misuse of the substance, whereas others accuse the bill of providing a form of soft legalization that still impedes the rights of citizens.

Whatever your view on the matter, this policy places the small nation of Luxembourg leaps and bounds ahead of other European nations when it comes to the freedom to grow.

External Resources:
  1. Malta becomes first EU nation to legalise cannabis https://www.bbc.co.uk
  2. RTL Today - It's official: Luxembourg legalises cultivation and consumption of cannabis at home https://today.rtl.lu
  3. RTL Today - It's official: Luxembourg legalises cultivation and consumption of cannabis at home https://today.rtl.lu
  4. Vote de plusieurs projets de loi, dont ceux relatifs au cannabis récréatif et aux ASBL/ fondations - Ministère de la Justice // Le gouvernement luxembourgeois https://mj.gouvernement.lu
  5. RTL Today - It's official: Luxembourg legalises cultivation and consumption of cannabis at home https://today.rtl.lu
  6. Culture du cannabis à domicile approuvée: «Ce n’est pas une légalisation, c’est une réglementation» | Virgule https://www.virgule.lu
  7. Privater Cannabis-Anbau von vier Pflanzen ist künftig erlaubt | Luxemburger Wort https://www.wort.lu
  8. RTL Today - It's official: Luxembourg legalises cultivation and consumption of cannabis at home https://today.rtl.lu
  9. Luxembourg first in Europe to legalise growing and using cannabis | Luxembourg | The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com
  10. Cannabis for medicinal purposes pilot project | Delano News https://delano.lu
Disclaimer:
This content is for educational purposes only. The information provided is derived from research gathered from external sources.

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Privacy Policy - Royal Queen Seeds

To ensure a safe online environment and guarantee adequate data protection, we strictly comply with all legal requirements. In this privacy statement, we provide information about how and for what purpose data is collected, safety measures, storage periods and contact details.


COMPANY NAME: SNORKEL SPAIN, SL (hereinafter ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS)

C/ Vilar d'Abdelà, 5 (nave 1) CP: 08170 de Montornès del Vallès

+34 937 379 846

support@royalqueenseeds.com


The present Privacy Policy sets out the terms on which we will treat personal data at ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS; this includes any personal data collected through our website https://www.royalqueenseeds.com/ as well as any other data we process in the course of our business activities.

ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS collects the following personal data for the purposes listed below:

SECTION 1 – PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT

1.1 Account purchases

Account purchases can only be made if you are in possession of a personal account. When you create an account or purchase something from our shop, as part of the buying and selling process we collect the following personal information that you provide to us:

This information is required for delivery. In addition, when you browse our shop, we automatically receive the Internet Protocol (IP) address of your computer. Based on this information, we can optimise your online experience and at the same time protect our online environment.

Purpose of data collection

We collect and store account-related data for the following purposes:

(a) to carry out obligations arising from any contracts between you and us, and to provide you with information, products and services that you may request from us;

(b) to set up, manage and communicate with you about your account and your orders;

(c) to conduct market research and analysis;

(d) to confirm your age and identity, and to detect and prevent fraud.

1.2 Newsletters

With your explicit permission, we may send you newsletters about our shop, new products and other updates. We send newsletters based on your explicit consent. In the event that you purchase a product, and in accordance with current regulations, we may send you commercial communications in accordance with the legitimate interest of our company, always about products or services similar to those you have purchased or contracted. In any case, you may exercise your right of opposition through the channels announced in this Privacy Policy. The following information is collected in relation to the newsletter:

We do not need to know the sex of the person in order to send the newsletter (data minimisation: by law we must ask for data that is strictly necessary to provide the service, and in this case knowing the sex is not necessary to send the newsletter).

Purpose of data collection

The data collected is used to:

(a) personalise our emails, including your name and gender;

(b) provide gender-specific content.

You can withdraw your consent at any time by using the link provided in the newsletter or the contact information provided in section 2.

1.3 Customer service and contact form

In order to provide appropriate support, our customer service employees have access to information related to the account. Consequently, their support will be highly effective and friendly. The data provided in our contact form is used by our CRM provider, SuperOffice. We will only use your details to respond to your message.

SECTION 2 – LEGITIMATE INTEREST

If you have purchased any of our products, please note that we may process your personal data for promotional purposes, based on Royal Queen Seeds' legitimate interest only to offer you products or services from our company and about products or services similar to those you have purchased. You may exercise your right to opt out of future messages by the means set out in this Privacy Policy or through any notification you receive.

2.1 How do you withdraw consent?

If you change your mind, you can withdraw your consent for us to contact you for the purpose of collecting, using, or disclosing your data at any time by reaching out to us at: support@royalqueenseeds.com.

SECTION 3 – DISCLOSURE

We may disclose your personal information if we are required to do so by law or if you breach our Terms of Service.

SECTION 4 – HOW LONG DO WE KEEP YOUR DATA?

At Royal Queen Seeds, we will not retain your data for longer than is necessary for the purposes described in this Policy. Different retention periods apply for different types of data; however, the longest period we will normally hold any personal data is 10 years.

4.1 Account information

Data relating to the account remains relevant for as long as the consumer is in possession of an account. Therefore, the data remains documented for as long as the account exists. When our customers delete an account, the associated data will be deleted within a reasonable period of time. Requests regarding the inspection or correction of stored personal data or the deletion of an account can be sent to support@royalqueenseeds.com.

4.2 Newsletters

In the event that you give us your consent to inform you about our products or services, we will keep your data until you express your wish not to receive any further communications from us. However, we regularly (every month) carry out a relevance check. Registered customers (and their personal information) will be deleted whenever customers do not reply to our request. In addition, our newsletter mailing has an opt-out feature. Consumers can withdraw their consent by using this opt-out feature.

SECTION 5 – COOKIES

Cookies are small information files that notify your computer of previous interactions with our website. These cookies are stored on your hard drive, not on our website. Essentially, when you use our website, your computer displays its cookies to us, informing our site that you have visited before. This allows our website to function more quickly and remember aspects related to your previous visits (such as your username), making your experience more convenient. At Royal Queen Seeds, we use two types of cookies: functional and analytical.

5.1 Functional Cookies

Functional cookies are used to enhance your online experience. Among other things, these cookies track what is added to your shopping cart. The use of these cookies does not require prior authorization.

5.2 Analytical Cookies

Analytical cookies are used for research and market analysis. The data collected with these analytical cookies is anonymous, making it unusable for third parties. The use of these cookies does not require prior authorization.

SECTION 5 – THIRD-PARTY SERVICES

Third-party services are required to conduct transactions and provide our services. In general, the third-party providers we use will only collect, use and disclose your information to the extent necessary to enable them to perform the services they provide to us.

However, certain third-party service providers, such as payment gateways and other payment transaction processors, have their own privacy policies regarding the information we must provide to them for your transactions.

We encourage you to read the privacy policies of these providers so that you can understand how these providers will handle your personal information.

In particular, certain suppliers may be located or have facilities located in a different jurisdiction than yours or ours. Therefore, if you choose to proceed with a transaction involving the services of a third party, your information may be subject to the laws of the jurisdiction in which that service provider or its facilities are located.

Once you leave our website or are redirected to a third-party website or application, you are no longer governed by this Privacy Policy or the Terms of Service of our website.

Web analytics service (anonymous data)

On this website we have integrated an element of a web analytics service (with anonymisation functionality). Web analytics can be defined as the gathering, processing and analysis of data about the behaviour of visitors to websites. An analytics service collects, among other things, data about which website a person came from (the so-called referrer), which sub-pages they visited or how often and for how long they visited a sub-page. Web analytics is mainly used for website optimisation and for a cost–benefit analysis of internet advertising.

Courier service

To complete deliveries we use a courier service. This courier service carries out the delivery between our company and the consumer's home. To complete these logistics, the company requires access to the consumer's name and address information.

Mailing service

Royal Queen Seeds uses a third-party mail service provider to send its newsletter. This provider has access to limited account information related to opt-in consent (e.g. email address).

Marketing services

Royal Queen Seeds has the support of a company that specialises in marketing and communication activities. Their access to personal information is very limited and mostly anonymous.

Payment services

At Royal Queen Seeds we use external payment services to handle our transactions (e.g. credit card payments).

SECTION 6 – SECURITY

To protect your personal information, we take reasonable precautions and follow industry standard best practices to ensure that it is not inappropriately lost, misused, accessed, disclosed, altered or destroyed.

If you provide us with your credit card information, the information is encrypted using secure socket layer technology (SSL) and stored using AES-256 encryption. Although no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure, we follow all PCI-DSS requirements and implement additional industry standards that are commonly accepted. Information related to the account is protected with a hashing method. This method transforms the information into a generated hash. As a result, confidential information is protected and invisible, even to us. In addition, our databases are exceptionally protected against unauthorised access. For example, access to the database is only possible and permitted via approved IP addresses (e.g. from Royal Queen Seeds headquarters). Other attempts and addresses are rejected at all times.

Furthermore, data is anonymised as much as possible, so it cannot be directly linked to a specific consumer. With this data, however, we may be able to carry out market research and analysis. In addition, the third parties concerned (e.g. mailing service) are examined prior to our collaboration, comply with the GDPR from the EU and receive a processing agreement. Within Royal Queen Seeds, employees are assigned different access permissions. Specific permission provides access only to information that is strictly required to perform a task. Digital security measures are subject to change and must meet high requirements to ensure the safety of online customers. That is why, at Royal Queen Seeds, we appoint a security officer. Regular verification and improvement of security measures (where necessary) are part of the role.

SECTION 7 – CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy at any time, so please check back regularly. Changes and clarifications will be effective immediately upon being published on the Website. If we make substantial changes to this policy, we will notify you here that it has been updated so you will know what information we collect, how we use it and under what circumstances, if any, we use and/or disclose it.

SECTION 8 – YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO: