Brussels, 11/07/2011 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission is concerned at the arrival of new synthetic drugs on the European market and, in the autumn, intends to strengthen its arsenal of measures to combat this trend. The announcement was made by Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding in a press release on Monday 11 July, marking the publication of a report on the EU's mechanism for monitoring new substances and also of a Eurobarometer survey on use of synthetic drugs in Europe.
In 2010, 41 new psychoactive drugs (such as spice, for example), which produce effects similar to drugs such as ecstasy or cocaine, were identified, compared with 24 in 2009, the Commission says. These new substances can be bought and sold legally, over the internet or in specialist shops - something the Commission intends to stop.
According to the Eurobarometer survey published on 11 July, 5% of young Europeans say they have used these new drugs. “The figures are the highest in Ireland (16%), followed by Poland (9%), Latvia (9%), the UK (8%) and Luxembourg (7%)”, the Commission says. The most common sources of supply were through friends (54%), at parties or in clubs (37%), in specialist shops (33%), or over the internet (7%). “New synthetic drugs are becoming widely available at an unprecedented pace in Europe. They can be toxic, addictive and have long-term adverse effects”, said Reding, adding that the current system for detecting these new drugs “is not fit to tackle the large increase in the number of these substances on the market”.
In its assessment report of the EU mechanism, set up in 2005, for dealing with new psychoactive substances, also published on 11 July, the Commission says that the system for early warnings “works well” but that it remains too easy for people to “get around the current control measures” and create new drugs. So ways of monitoring these new substances have to be beefed up, the Commission goes on. In the autumn, it will, then, bring forward “various options for making EU rules more effective”, Reding went on to say, including “alternatives to criminal sanctions, new ways of monitoring substances that cause concern, and aligning drugs control measures with those for food and product safety”. (S.P./transl.rt)