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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Cocaine offences at record level
BBC Online
Tuesday 06 Dec 2005 Cocaine offences have reached record levels in England and Wales, with a 16% increase last year, according to Home Office figures. The number of Class A drug offences dealt with by police in 2004 reached a new peak of 36,350 - up 2% on 2003. There were 8,070 cocaine offences - up from 6,970 - while the number of crack cocaine offences rose 8% to 2,440. Overall, drug offences fell 21% to 105,570, owing to the reclassification of cannabis from Class B to Class C. The new figures showed the number of people found guilty or cautioned declined for all drugs apart from cocaine and crack. Heroin offenders fell from 10,520 in 2003 to 10,040, and the number of people punished for ecstasy-type drug offences fell 300 to 5,230. In total, 89,820 people were dealt with by the authorities for drugs offences in 2004 - of who 49,310 were found guilty at court and 33,470 cautioned by police. A Home Office spokesman said the government's strategy was to focus on the drugs which caused most harm and deal robustly with those who supplied them. He said: "The figures today show a rise in convictions and cautions for cocaine, indicating successful police enforcement activity. "Use of cocaine has actually fallen in the last year according to the British Crime Survey." But Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman told BBC News the country was moving itself into a "cocaine culture". Only 49,840 people were found guilty or cautioned by police for cannabis offences in 2004 compared with 82,060 in 2003 - a fall of 39%. Former home secretary David Blunkett downgraded cannabis to Class C in January 2004, making most cases of cannabis possession a non-arrestable offence. But in March this year, Home Secretary Charles Clarke moved to reassess the dangers of the drug in the light of new medical research. He has asked advisers to look at the Dutch government's plans to introduce a higher classification for more potent types of cannabis, such as "skunk". He also highlighted recent studies which suggested a link between cannabis use and mental illness. Last month EU figures revealed one in 10 UK adults under the age of 35 had tried cocaine - the highest level of users in Europe. The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, which released the figures, said the drug played a role in an estimated 10% of all drug-related deaths. Cocaine offences 1994 - 1,570 1997 - 2,880 2004 - 8,070
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