In 2008, an estimated 34billion euros was spent on the drugs problem in the EU. Much more needs to be done - and must be done - in the battle against the EU's drugs problem. The EU must be more effective in its fight against drugs trafficking, and should call on Member States to be more ready to learn from each other's experiences and to encourage cross-border dialogue between their local governments and cities. Following a six month-long inquiry, the Committee agree that the Member States should, as now, retain responsibility for their own drugs policies. They recommend that the new EU Strategy should concentrate on three key areas. Firstly, co-ordination, through Europol, of the fight against drug trafficking ensuring that any new measures actually reduce the supply of drugs and do not merely move trafficking elsewhere. Secondly, improvement of the collection, analysis, evaluation and distribution of information by the European Monitoring Centre. Thirdly, reliance on the EU's public health obligations and use of public health duties to encourage Member States to devote more resources to harm reduction and to engage in dispassionate and evidence-based discussions on how best to treat the possession and use of drugs. The Committee believes that the creation of a new drugs strategy, lasting until 2020, should provide the perfect platform for a wider and better informed public debate on different Member States' policies and approaches

This volume arose from a European Scientific Seminar on `Strategies and Policies to Combat Drugs', which was organized by the Commission of the European Communities at the European University Institute in Florence in December 1993. The significance of the seminar lay in the manner in which it sought to address the full range of issues associated with the drug problem at international, national and local level. Equally important was its success in attracting participants from a number of different disciplines -- scientific experts, national and EU administrators working in the drugs field, and members of the European Parliament. That provided for a lively and wide-ranging exchange of views and ideas which is reflected in the contributions and conclusions contained in this publication, which comprises varied contributions and approaches to drug policies at international, European, national and local level. It also focuses on the possibilities of a comprehensive Drug Strategy within the framework of the European Union.

Martin Elvins' book is the first to trace the evolution of anti-drugs policies at European Union level from the late 1960s to the present. Phases of drug policy development, key policy actors and institutions are described with particular reference to the influence of transnational networks of expertise. Policy development is placed in the context of both European integration and a broad harmonization of international policies against drug trafficking. Concerns are also raised about secretive and anti-democratic features on intergovernmental EU decision-making.

The European Union (EU) is making strong inroads into areas of security traditionally reserved to states, especially into internal security, or Justice and Home Affairs. The Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (AFSJ), as it has been renamed in the Amsterdam Treaty, has seen significant policy developments since the late 1990s. In fact, there has been no other example of a policy-making area making its way so quickly and comprehensively to the centre of the treaties and to the top of the EU’s policy-making agenda. After major treaty revisions in Maastricht, Amsterdam, Nice, and, finally the Lisbon Treaty, which entered into force on 1 December 2009, as well as an increased political impetus through the European Council Summits in Tampere (1999), the Hague (2004), and Stockholm (2009), the area appears as one of the most promising policy fields for integration in the EU in the foreseeable future. This process has deepened even more significantly after the terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001 in the United States, on 11 March 2004 in Madrid, and on 7 July 2005 in London. This book is the first to analyse these hugely topical developments in European internal security at both the treaty and policy levels, as well as its implementation at the national level, from various disciplinary perspectives (political science, law, criminology, etc). This book was published as a special edition of European Security.

The drug control regime established by the international community has not succeeded in curbing either the demand for, or the offer of, narcotics. But, despite a series of developments in the Americas – including the legalisation of cannabis in Uruguay and in several states in the United States of America – there is still little support in Europe for repealing drug-prohibition laws. Nevertheless, a gradual policy convergence reveals the emergence of a European model favouring public-health strategies over a strictly penal approach to combatting drugs, while growing transnational support for legalisation indicates the persistence of an alternative paradigm for drug policy. This book examines the various influences on drug policies in Europe, as grassroots movements, NGO networks, private foundations and academic research centres increasingly confront the prevailing discourses of drug prohibition. Pursuing an interdisciplinary approach and bringing together legal scholars, social scientists and practitioners, it provides a comprehensive and critical assessment of drug policy reform in Europe.

This engaging and thoroughly updated text provides a cross-national perspective on the use and regulation of both legal and illegal drugs. It examines and critiques drug policies in the United States and abroad in terms of their scope, goals, and effectiveness. Authors Clayton J. Mosher and Scott Akins also discuss the physiological, psychological, and behavioral effects of legal and illicit drugs; the patterns and correlates of use; theories of the causes of drug use; and the policies that govern that usage. Features and Benefits Thoroughly reviews use of and regulation policies of both illegal and legal drugs, including the use of energy drinks and muscle enhancers like steroids and human growth hormones. Very up to date statistics and discussions of emerging trends and policies. Provides more coverage of drug policy issues than comparable books with particular attention to contrasting policies in countries around the world. Coverage of drug "epidemics" for new legal and illegal drugs not found in other books on drugs.

The 2016 UNGASS on drug policy resulted in an Outcome Document detailing profound differences of opinion and practice between different states polarising public health and human rights themes. This book examines the different positions, the underlying problems, and the options open for the next international gathering on drugs.

How is drug policy developed? Members of the Pompidou Group research platform from 17 European countries have studied this question, taking into account differing national political contexts, the influence of international conventions and drug strategies at V European level, the evolution of scientific knowledge, and treatment of drug addiction in the most broad sense of the word. This work in part provides a reply to the question whether countries opt for an integrated policy on substances, or for a separate policy for each substance. This publication also attempts to identify to what extent civil society, practice and science influence the formulation of drug policy.

Review of the Stockholm Programme (2010-2014) and recommendations for the successor JHA programme.