The Dutch government is to reclassify high-strength marijuana alongside hard drugs such as cocaine and ecstasy.

The move announced by economic affairs minister Maxime Verhagen means that most of the cannabis sold in the Netherlands' famed weed cafes will have to be replaced by milder variants.

Mr Verhagen said the high-potency cannabis is so much stronger than the strains sold a generation ago, it should be considered a different drug entirely.

The step is the latest in the country's decade-long retreat from permissive policies of the past.

Opponents say the plan will prove difficult to enforce and heavy smokers will simply smoke milder weed.

PA