DRUGS minister John Curran said gardaí need to target the growing trend of people being supplied cocaine by family members or friends.

CENTRAL Statistics Office figures for last year reveal several types of prescription drug tablets being seized in their tens of thousands for the first time.

GARDAÍ yesterday said the quality of cocaine seized in a haul of the drug on Wednesday was “extremely low” and was only about 7% pure.

COCAINE purity levels have fallen dramatically, with the average deal containing as little as 10% pure cocaine, it emerged yesterday.

NEARLY 60,000 people have taken cocaine within the last year — more that twice the number of people in 2003, according to a population survey published yesterday.

A major study on the widespread use of drugs in Ireland will be launched today.

DRUGS strategy minister Noel Ahern has outlined his concerns over a boom in the supply of heroin, following a sharp increase in opium cultivation in Afghanistan.

A CLASS A drug which is banned in the US is being sold legally in shops in Dublin, as an alternative to ecstasy and cocaine.

THE vast majority of people who have taken cocaine do not progress and become regular users, according to a new report.

The National Advisory Committee on Drugs (NACD) has said we could see cannabis being used for medical purposes in Ireland in the future.

Research carried out by the National Advisory Committee on Drugs (NACD) found the majority of people in Ireland would approve of using cannabis for medicinal reasons.

EIGHT out of 10 people who use cannabis get their drugs from friends or family, new research shows.