EPC Dialogue: “European Drug Policy on the Brink of Change”

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to thank the organisers of today’s conference, the European Policy Centre, the International Federation of Journalists and The Senlis Council for giving me the opportunity to introduce a frank and future oriented dialogue on the issue of European drugs policy. I very much welcome your initiative. While the involvement of the civil society is of general great importance in all fields of decision making this applies notably to the fight against drugs.

The drug problem is a global one to which no country is immune. We in the European Union are confronted with continued high levels of drugs trafficking and drugs misuse. These phenomena are of great concern of our citizens. According to a Eurobarometer study of spring 2003 nearly nine out of ten EU citizens named the fight against drugs and organised crime among the main priorities of the EU. Results of another study on public safety confirm that people openly dealing drugs, syringes in the parks and drug-related violent crime contribute to a widespread sense of insecurity in our cities and among our citizens. The damage caused to societies through drug related crime, health problems and social exclusion are major challenges we have to face and fight.

This task is complex because the problem itself is complex and multifaceted. First of all the drug phenomenon has a dynamic nature. Patterns of drug consumption vary in the EU-15 countries as well as in the acceding and candidate countries. And there is the question of legal competences. Primary responsibility for tackling the drugs problem is with the Member States and national policies differ to a certain extent. Community competence in this field remains limited. This should, however, not discourage us to act. We possess a large room for manoeuvre to establish a comprehensive European drugs policy. A major tool in this respect is the EU Action Plan on drugs 2000-2004. All EU Member States, together with the acceding countries, have committed themselves to the goals of the plan. It provides a guide to all actors in the EU when setting priorities in the drugs area, it ensures that drugs receive the necessary high level support and it provides last but not least a solid base for the evaluation of all drug-related activities. While the plan is not a legally binding document it has a strong incentive for all actors involved to reach the agreed targets.

We are still in the middle of an ambitious process, but progress is being made. In November 2003 in the Justice and Home Affairs Council achieved a major breakthrough by adopting a Framework Decision on drug trafficking. By definition, trafficking in illicit drugs often involves several Member States and action at the EU level adds real value to national efforts. The Framework Decision is a major step forward. It contains a common definition of drug trafficking and foresees effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties in all Member States. The instrument also allows closer and more effective cooperation between the law enforcement authorities based on commonly agreed principles and aims. It will also help the new Member States in further developing their cooperation structures in this field. Of course, the effectiveness of the Framework Decision can only be guaranteed if it is promptly and fully implemented at national level!

The enlargement of the European Union presents us with both new challenges and opportunities on the drugs front. For the time being we are more confronted with the potential problems we may face. We cannot ignore the concern that enlargement will lead to an increase in drug trafficking from and through the central and eastern European countries. Some of the new Member States have traditionally been transit countries for drugs destined for the EU. Large-scale drug seizures, especially of heroin, on the Balkans and Central European routes confirm that trafficking continues and that drugs are stored in those areas. But we should also bear in mind that the enlargement will provide us with the opportunity to co-operate more closely to tackle the problem. For the time being the PHARE programme has been used to support the development of institutional capacities for coordinated drug policies as well as for practical cooperation between enforcement authorities. PHARE has also supported NGOs active in drug demand reduction, and technical assistance is provided by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction to these countries in collecting drug-related information. The new Member States need all the support available to ensure that drugs will remain a policy priority in a situation where action against drugs has to compete for resources with many other priorities.

Synthetic drugs unfortunately still enjoy great popularity throughout the enlarged Union. According to Europol the number of production sites for synthetic drugs discovered each year in the EU is consistent at around 50-70. But, advances in methodology, increased sophistication of manufacturing equipment and increasing involvement of specialists is resulting in increasing production efficiency and capacity. Another serious problem is poly-drug consumption, mixing different types of illicit and licit drugs. Detecting and responding to the new trends requires effective information collection and exchange. It also calls for coordination of policies of prevention, risk reduction and control. We need a well functioning early warning system in order to control rapidly the most dangerous substances at EU level. So far, the 1997 Joint Action on New Synthetic Drugs has provided a solid framework for these activities. Since 1997 five synthetic drugs have been examined and two of them – 4-MTA and PMMA – have been made subject to strict control measures in the EU. In order to improve the system further, the Commission in September 2003 presented a proposal for a Council Decision to replace the 1997 Joint Action. The most important innovation is that this Council Decision includes under its scope all new synthetic drugs and all new narcotic drugs of natural origin. The Commission has also proposed to streamline the procedure by creating a system of three consecutive but independent phases starting with an early warning system for rapid information exchange. If deemed necessary, this will be followed by a scientific risk assessment on the social, health and other risks of a notified substance. The final phase is an EU level procedure for bringing notified substances under control in the Member States. There is a general consensus on the need for a new instrument and the Commission hopes to have it approved as soon as possible.

The examples above illustrate some areas where a European drugs policy offers clear added-value. While the core-principles of subsidiarity and proportionality have to be respected, action at EU level can and has to complement action at national, regional and local levels. Concentrated Community action is clearly needed in areas like money laundering and control of precursors. Common experiences show that there is a strong need for accelerated EU action within the field of Justice and Home Affairs. In many other sectors like public health, the role of the Community is to complement Member States’ action in reducing drug-related harm. Learning from experience of others, sharing and evaluation of best practices, benchmarking and networking at the EU level are promising ways forward. The adoption of a Council Recommendation for preventing and reducing health-related harm associated with drug dependence last June is a good example in this respect. A future EU Action Plans should continue to provide a framework for actions at all levels and at the same time reflect those areas where there is agreement among all the Member States on a common policy line.

With regard to the international dimension of the drug phenomenon I believe that there is a strong need to improve co-ordination within the EU for both, the allocation of resources to drug related projects and the preparation of major international events such as the UN Special Assembly, the Commission on Narcotic Drugs and the Dublin Group meetings. We can only reinforce European identity and boost the Union’s presence and profile on the international scene through genuine European co-ordination. The role of the Horizontal Group on Drugs in the Council as the coordinating group at the EU level is crucial in this context.

The Union possesses a number of Drugs Action Plans for certain regions as Latin America and the Caribbean, Central Asia and the Balkans. These action plans should be accompanied by a clear determination and practical means to achieve agreed objectives. For its part, the Commission has thoroughly reformed its external aid system. A ‘Country Strategy Paper’ and a programming document are prepared for every country receiving aid. The purpose is to link financial assistance more closely to the priorities of the Union’s partner countries on the basis of an analysis of their economic, political and social situation. These documents are discussed with the Member States and recipient countries and then endorsed by the Commission. They provide a valuable opportunity to coordinate aid at EU level, and each partner has the opportunity to argue the importance of the drugs problem and have it recorded among the priorities for the countries concerned.

Allow me finally a few words about our key tools for a European drugs policy: coordination and evaluation. The Commission’s recent Communication on Coordination on Drugs in Europe spells out clearly that the overall balanced approach can not work without effective coordination of all those involved, co-ordination within the Member States and within and between the European institutions supported by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Europol. The minimum requirement for any EU approach to work is that all actors at the national, regional and local level are aware of decisions taken at the EU level. Experience has shown that this is not always the case. We need to work on this further.

As for the way forward from 2004 onwards, the crucial element will be the lessons learned from the evaluation of the present EU Action Plan. The Commission has committed itself to present the results of the final evaluation by the end of this year. Policy impact evaluation may still be in its infancy and the lack of quantifiable objectives in the present Action Plan does not make our task simple. However, we have started the process of defining key indicators and tools that in the future may act as quality standards in adopting new strategies and policies. I am confident that this will lead to a policy at Union-level that has a real impact on the drugs situation in the Union. The Treaty of Amsterdam has introduced the objective of providing citizens with a high level of safety within an area of freedom, security and justice. The fight against drugs is inseparably linked with this objective. Tackling drugs is and will therefore remain a top priority of the European Union.