To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 13 June (HL Deb, col 1000–1002), what plans they have to remove the supply of illegal drugs and psychoactive substances from the control of organised criminals throughout the world; and what consultations they have had at an international level about achieving that goal.
Answered on
24 June 2016
Her Majesty's Government is deeply concerned about the involvement of Organised Criminal Groups (OCGs) in facilitating the trafficking of both psychoactive substances and illegal drugs.
The UK works internationally with a range of partners to tackle the involvement of OCGs in drug trafficking using both bilateral and multilateral policy levers; including the UN and EU. We also have strong operational links with law enforcement partners in other countries. This work includes the sharing of operational information and expertise, the provision on capacity building, and policy dialogue.
We have committed to implementing The Psychoactive Substances Act, which commenced on 26 May 2016, and are monitoring law enforcement activity to determine what impact the Act has already had. The 2010 Drug Strategy also commits us to 'combat the international flow of drugs to the UK, collaborating with international partners to disrupt drug trafficking upstream', and the 2013 Serious and Organised Crime Strategy highlights that 'capacity building, across government and in coordination with other states, is essential'. International engagement underpins the delivery of these strategies.