In the two months since the city of Amsterdam introduced a ban on public weed smoking, the police have handed out zero fines, Het Parool reports.
At the end of May, the municipality implemented tougher rules for alcohol and cannabis consumption in parts of the Dutch capital in an attempt to reduce noise disturbances and disruption for local residents.
For the past two months, anyone - whether they be a Dutch citizen, an expat, or a tourist - who is found smoking weed on Dam Square, the Damrak, the Nieuwenmarkt or in the Red Light District is issued with a warning which, if ignored, is followed up with a 100-euro fine.
In spite of this, however, a spokesperson for the city’s mayor Femke Halsema told Het Parool that the police have issued zero fines since the law came into force on May 25. “People are first warned and then just finish their joint,” said the spokesperson.
This news is perhaps not particularly surprising, as when the law change was announced in February Halsema had admitted that it would be tricky to enforce: “The implementation in practice is complex and will always have to be weighed in the light of the other problems in the area at the moment … As an enforcement line, it has been agreed that violations will be addressed as much as possible.”
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