Yzabelle Bostyn
THESE are the biggest drug consuming countries in Europe- with Spain high on the list.
Almost a third of all Europeans have tried illegal drugs at least once in their lives with the most used narcotics being cannabis and cocaine.
Spain is one of the worst offenders in Europe for cannabis, alongside the Czech Republic, Italy and France.
Some 15% of Europe’s young adults have consumed cannabis in the last year according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development report.
According to the research, Spain ‘plays a significant role’ in the transit and production of cannabis with 81% of Europe’s cannabis plants seized in Spain.
In the last few years the gap between young male and female cannabis users has also been closing, with girls overtaking the boys in some countries.
Spain was also amongst the top users of cocaine alongside the Netherlands and Ireland.
Some 2.5% of Europe’s young people have consumed the drug in the past year.
“In 2022, for the sixth year in a row, EU Member States reported a record amount of cocaine seized, amounting to 323 tonnes,” said the report.
“Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands remain the countries reporting the highest volumes of seizures, reflecting their importance as entry points for cocaine trafficked to Europe.”
But the ‘severity’ of anti-drug policies doesn’t seem to influence the availability of drugs in these areas, at least amongst young people.
Although cannabis and cocaine are the most consumed drugs in Europe, other substances such as MDMA, heroin and other opioids are rising in popularity.
Synthetic drugs made in factories are especially worrying because it is hard for authorities to quickly identify problem drugs, stop them and detain traffickers.
It is also hard to know exactly what the drugs contain as they are often contaminated with other substances.
