Irish top uppers and ecstasy users, says UN
And we lie second out of 24 countries for cocaine consumption, and fourth for cannabis use.
The World Drug Report 2004 updated 1998 figures for Ireland using statistics from the Government's Slán household study of 2002.
Comparing these statistics with other Western European countries, annual drug rates in Ireland show:
l3.4% of the population aged 18+ have taken ecstasy the highest in Western Europe.
l1.6% have taken amphetamines, which places us joint highest with Britain.
9% have smoked cannabis, the fourth highest figure of those surveyed.
l2.4% have taken cocaine, the second highest in western Europe.
The report, published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, was criticised by the Government and some health professionals last year for using old statistics from 1998, which showed high drug usage rates.
But the 2002 Slán figures still placed us at the top, or towards the top, for all the illegal drugs.
They show that the annual rate for ecstasy increased from 2.4% in 1998, while consumption of cocaine rose by 1.1%. Amphetamine rates fell by 1.2% and cannabis by 0.4%.
However, a Government spokesman yesterday said the Slán figures were not as accurate as a population study carried out the National Advisory Committee on Drugs (NACD) last year.
"The population survey carried out by the NACD is a more comprehensive and drug-specific type of survey," said a spokeswoman for the Minister of State with responsibility for the National Drugs Strategy, Noel Ahern.
"The methodology used is different. The basis upon which the NACD report was done was perhaps more accurate in assessing drug prevalence."
The NACD report shows that 5.1% of people aged 15+ had taken cannabis in the last year. This would place us mid-table in the UN report.
NACD figures show that 1.1% had taken ecstasy (placing us fifth); 1.1% cocaine (placing us joint fourth) and 0.4% amphetamine (placing us mid-table).
Elsewhere, the World Drug Report notes a continuing increase in the trafficking and use of cocaine and ecstasy throughout Europe, reflected by strong increases in seizures.
The rise of cocaine in Europe is despite the fact that global cultivation of the coca bush (from which cocaine is extracted) fell for the fourth straight year in 2003. The report noted that the consumption of cannabis herb more potent than cannabis resin, the main form of the drug in Ireland appeared to be spreading at "an accelerated pace".
The report said production of heroin had risen slightly in 2003, but warned that it was due to increase significantly this year.
The report said the overall spread of illegal drugs seemed to have been contained.
185 million people have taken a drug over the last year 3% of the world's population. 146m have taken cannabis 2.3% of the population.
29.6m have taken amphetamine 0.5%.
13.3m have taken cocaine 0.2%.
