National ban
That laughing gas regularly causes problems on the road has already been shown in 2019. Police figures then showed that the number of traffic incidents involving nitrous oxide had increased sharply in one year. In the first seven months of 2019, there were 960 incidents, compared to 380 in all of 2018. That number rose to 2,305 that same year. news hour also an increase in spinal cord injury treatments by laughing gas.
In december 2019 State Secretary Blokhuis announced that work is underway to ban nitrous oxide for recreational use. The reason was an advice from the CAM drug assessment committee. The national ban would come into effect on January 1, 2021, but that pale (.pdf) practically impracticable according to Blokhuis. There was no money at the judiciary for enforcement. Many municipalities thought it was taking too long, and argued itself a local laughing gas ban in.
The financing is now available and the law is before the House of Representatives and the Senate. The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport hopes to have the nitrous oxide ban come into effect in the spring of 2022.
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