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U.S. Department of State
1996 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, March 1997

United States Department of State

Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs


UNITED KINGDOM

I. Summary

The United Kingdom (UK) is a consumer country of illicit drugs. It produces and exports many precursor and essential chemicals that could be used to manufacture illicit drugs. It strictly enforces national precursor chemical legislation in compliance with EU regulations. British financial institutions have been vulnerable to money laundering, but implementation of tougher money laundering legislation appears to have reduced vulnerability throughout the crown territories. Nevertheless, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man have offshore banking facilities that attract drug funds. The UK is a party to the 1988 UN Convention.

II. Status of Country

British drug policy addresses demand reduction, treatment and law enforcement, and focuses on locally based action plans. Marijuana is the most popular illicit drug in the UK. With an estimated 100,000 heroin addicts, British officials are preoccupied with stemming the abuse of heroin and other injected drugs. There has been an increase in crack cocaine and cocaine use, but they remain under control. British authorities are concerned about the use of amphetamines and ecstasy (MDMA). The benzodiazepine, Temazepam, is a major drug of abuse.

III. Country Actions Against Drugs in 1996

Policy Initiatives. The British Government implemented an initiative introduced in 1995 called "Tackling Drugs Together," a three-year program aimed at increasing community safety from drug-related crime, helping young people resist drugs, and reducing the health risks of drug abuse. Local drug action teams comprising police, probation, health, education, prison and local authorities developed action plans in 1996 to deal with drug misuse in their jurisdiction.

The UK vigorously contributes to international drug control efforts. British bilateral aid and assistance focused in 1996 on Latin America (Colombia), Central/Eastern Europe, and Southwest Asia. The UK cooperates closely with the UNDCP and was a principal proponent of the UNDCP-sponsored Caribbean initiative on counternarcotics. The UK usually channels about half of its counternarcotics funding through the UNDCP (about 4.8 million pounds in FY96-97). The British actively particpate and play a leading role in a number of international drug control fora including the Council of Europe's Pompidou Group, the Dublin Group, Europol's drug unit and other EU fora, and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The UK chairs the Southwest Asia region in the Dublin Group and is a vocal counternarcotics advocate in the many mini-Dublin Groups throughout the world.

Accomplishments. In October, a bill was introduced in parliament which will require mandatory minimum sentences for repeat drug traffickers. A bill making it an offense to distribute, but not to dispense, anabolic steroids became effective in the Fall of 1996. It is expected that this will drive some steroids traffickers from the UK who supply US customers through the mails.

Agreements and Treaties. On December 2, the updated US/UK Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty went into effect. The UK has been a party to the 1988 UN Convention since 1991 and complies fully with its provisions. The UK was the first EU member to ratify the Council of Europe's directive on money laundering. A US-UK extradition treaty is also in effect. The UK has acceded to the World Customs Organization's 1977 International Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance for the Prevention, Investigation, and Repression of Customs Offences. Annex 10 of this Convention, which the UK has accepted, deals with assistance in action against the smuggling of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.

Corruption. Narcotics-related corruption of public officials is not considered a problem in the UK. When identified, corrupt officials are vigorously prosecuted.

Demand Reduction/Domestic Programs. HMG's demand reduction efforts focus on educating young people. Teams located in high-risk urban areas work closely with the community in advertising harmful effects of drugs, disseminating information, offering training seminars for youth workers, and offering diversionary activities for youngsters.

Cultivation/Production. Small quantities of marijuana are cultivated for personal use; when deducted, the authorities destroy them. Small quantities of amphetamines and ecstasy are also manufactured in underground laboratories
which authorities destroy when found.

Drug Flow/transit. Heroin shipments to the UK generally originate in Afghanistan and Pakistan and are routed through Iran, Turkey, Central and Eastern Europe, and the Balkans. UK anecdotal evidence suggests that drug traffickers are using some of the new independent states as alternate smuggling routes to the West. Marijuana comes primarily from Morocco. Large cocaine shipments arrive directly from South America; smaller shipments (under 50 kgs) often come via Amsterdam. Supplies of amphetamines, ecstasy, and LSD can be traced to underground laboratories in the UK and certain other European countries, particularly the Netherlands and Poland.

Enforcement Efforts. British law enforcement officials, including Customs and Excise officials, are vigilant and effective. In 1995, the most recent year for which statistics are available, the UK seized nearly 61,500 kgs of controlled substances (of which 95 percent was cannabis) and convicted, cautioned or fined 93,600 drug offenders.

IV. US Policy Initiatives and Programs

Bilateral Cooperation. Since 1989, the US and UK governments have conducted periodic consultations at the senior level to coordinate and harmonize policies, plans and programs on all counternarcotics fronts. Law enforcement cooperation between the two countries is excellent and growing. The UK's appointment in 1996 of the first international drug coordinator (reporting to both the Foreign Secretary and the Home Secretary) further enhanced US/UK counternarcotics cooperation. The UK cooperates to the fullest extent with efforts by the US and other countries to trace or seize illicit assets. British laws permit the sharing of forfeited assets with the USG. Asset sharing with others is on an ad hoc basis. Additionally, the chief of the UK office of National Drug Control and Policy (ONDCP) visited the US in 1996 for coordinated research and development with his USG counterpart on world-wide, drug control strategies. His four-month trip was made pursuant to a 1995 memorandum of understanding on technology and drugs between the US and UK.

The Road Ahead. The US looks forward to continued close cooperation with the UK on all counternarcotics fronts.

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