On the table and behind the white lines

IRELAND is near the top of the European drug table for cocaine use, according to an EU report, but we are lower down the table for ecstasy use and in the bottom half of the table for cannabis use.

The report by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) said there were higher rates of cocaine use among young adults in Ireland, Denmark, Italy and Netherlands, which were positioned behind the biggest consumers, Britain and Spain.

The EMCDDA’s 2006 annual report said 2% of 15-34 year olds in Ireland had taken cocaine in the last year, placing us in joint-fifth position out of 27 European countries. The report said global production of cocaine was up and that the number of cocaine seizures in Europe had jumped by 36% in 2004. Paul Griffiths, scientific expert with the EMCDDA, said indications from 2005 and 2006 suggested cocaine seizures were continuing to rise.