Proposal for a recommendation submitted pursuant to Rule 94 of Parliament's Rules of Procedure

by the following Members:

on the harmonization of the Member States' laws on drugs

A. whereas the Irish Presidency has included the fight against drug abuse as one of the priorities for the next half-year and whereas the European Council has reaffirmed the importance of completing a study on the harmonization of the Member States' laws,

B. whereas drugs policies at international level are derived from the United Nations Conventions of 1961, 1971 and 1988, and whereas these conventions prohibit in particular the production, trafficking, sale and consumption of a whole range of substances other than for medical or scientific purposes,

C. whereas, despite the considerable resources devoted to the application of such policies, the production and consumption of prohibited substances have increased exponentially over the last 30 years, which constitutes a genuine failure as police and prison authorities also recognize,

D. whereas, in particular:

* As regards production and trafficking

- the increasing profits which criminal organizations derive from trade in illegal substances and which are ploughed back into criminal activities or legal financial circuits have reached such magnitude that the foundations of legal bodies and constitutional government are being undermined, even in the EU Member States,

- the profitability of the trade in illegal substances can only lead to an increase in the number of countries involved in production and generate massive investment in research into, and the production of, new chemical drugs, within the European Union as well,

- the main effect of deploying high levels of resources to stem the traffic in illegal substances has merely been to increase the selling price (crime tariff) for the sole benefit of organized crime circles, given that over 90% of narcotics move freely around the world,

* As regards social and health aspects and consumption

- consumers of illegal substances lack any information concerning the composition and effects thereof and are consequently exposed to risks (including, in particular, death as a result of an overdose and infection by the AIDS virus) which far outstrip the dangerous nature of the substances themselves,

- the clandestine nature of the consumption of illegal substances is an often insurmountable obstacle to prevention work and the provision of assistance by public authorities and private organizations; current policies therefore condemn consumers to live on the edge of society, in permanent contact with the criminal underworld,

- organized crime acts in such a way that the number of consumers increases rapidly and they are encouraged to move on from relatively harmless substances such as cannabis and its derivatives to the consumption of so-called hard drugs,

- extreme financial need and pressure from the world of organized crime lead consumers of illegal substances to become dealers themselves, which increases drug use even further,

* As regards legal and prison-related aspects

- the application of repressive drugs laws eventually places unbearable pressure on the legal and prison system to the extent that over half of those currently detained in the prisons of Europe are on trial for crimes directly or indirectly linked to drugs,

- the implementation of current drugs policies leads to the introduction into national law of rules which gradually restrict individual freedoms,

E. whereas the soundness of current policies and the search for alternative solutions are currently under consideration in an increasing number of the Member States' parliaments,

The European Parliament,

1. Maintains that the drug prohibition policy stemming from the UN Conventions of 1961, 1971 and 1988 is the actual cause of the increasing damage which the production, trafficking, sale and consumption of illegal substances inflict on whole sections of society, the economy and public institutions, thus undermining health, freedom and people's very lives;

2. Recommends that the Council and the Member States should ask the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction to assess the costs and benefits, from the social, health and economic points of view, of the policies conducted pursuant to the UN Conventions of 1961, 1971 and 1988;

3. Recommends the Council and the Member States to consider the positive results obtained from policies implemented in several Member States which involve risk reduction (in particular through the administration of substitute substances), the decriminalization of the consumption of certain substances, the partial decriminalization of the sale of cannabis and its derivatives and the controlled distribution of heroin;

4. Calls on the Council and the Member States to take the following action in order to make the fight against organized crime and drugs trafficking much more effective:

(a) introduce new rules on the production, sale and use of cannabis and its derivatives;

(b) repeal the criminal penalties relating to the consumption of other illegal substances;

(c) establish a system for the public control of the supply of substances which are currently illegal, and also to allow such substances to be prescribed by doctors;

5. Instructs its President to forward this recommendation to the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States.