Drugs
Drug smuggling by organised criminals is a major threat. Class A drugs, specifically heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine and ecstasy, are widely available throughout the UK. However, the crack and heroin markets are much smaller in Northern Ireland.
The involvement of organised crime in drug trafficking
The UK illegal drugs market remains extremely attractive to organised criminals. The prices charged at street level are some of the highest in Europe, and are sufficient to repay the costs of smuggling the drugs into the UK.
In 2003/04, the size of the illicit drugs market in the UK was estimated to be between £4 billion and £6.6 billion a year. The traditional distinction between international importers and the UK-based wholesalers is becoming more blurred, with some regional wholesalers travelling to the continent to arrange their own imports.
British organised criminals are active at all levels of the UK drugs trade, from importing to street-level distribution. A large number of foreign nationals are also heavily involved in the illegal drugs trafficking in the UK. Some have ethnic ties to the countries the drugs come from or travel through – this makes it easier for them to take major roles in the trade.
Supply to the UK
Heroin smuggling
More than 90% of the heroin which ends up on the UK’s streets is derived from Afghan opium, most of which has probably transited Iran, either directly from Afghanistan or via Pakistani Baluchistan. From Iran, heroin is moved through Turkey, where a large proportion is then transported through the Balkans overland to the European Union (EU). Most of the heroin moved along these routes ends up in the Netherlands before entering the UK.
Cocaine trafficking
An estimated 65-70% of UK’s identified cocaine supply is produced in Colombia, or from the border areas of neighbouring Venezuela and Ecuador. Peru and Bolivia account for the vast majority of the remainder. Various routes and methods are used to get the cocaine to the UK, one of Europe’s largest markets. Traditionally, most of the cocaine destined for Europe, including the UK, has crossed the Atlantic by ship and entered via Spain. More recently traffickers appear to be making increasing use of West Africa as a staging post for European shipments.
Synthetics
Synthetic drugs are defined as artificial substances produced for the illicit market, almost entirely manufactured from chemical compounds in illicit laboratories. Those most commonly seen in the EU and trafficked to the UK are known as amphetamine type stimulants (ATS): amphetamine, methylamphetamine and 3, 4 methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). The UK continues to be considered as the major market for amphetamine and MDMA in the European Union.
UK distribution
Once the drugs have been successfully brought into the UK, they have traditionally been transported to major cities such as London, Liverpool and Birmingham before being distributed. Many other cities and large towns act as secondary distribution points, with drugs moved in bulk before being sold on to local dealers.
Drugs destined for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are mostly routed via England, through the Channel ports, although there are signs that direct importation to Scotland continues to increase. The Scottish ‘ready rocked’ crack cocaine market in the Grampian region, linked to the heroin market, continues to be supplied predominantly from Liverpool, the Midlands and London.
Profits from drugs
Changes in drugs prices are managed in different ways, depending on the position in the distribution chain. The cash nature of the market at street level means that drugs are typically priced in denominations of £5, leaving little scope for marginal price changes.
Profit is recouped by changing the quality or quantity of the drug being sold. This is often through the process of “cutting”, where other substances such as chemicals or similar coloured powders are added to the primary drug to increase the volume of the drug being sold. Wholesale (multi-kilo) dealers have more flexibility and will increase the kilo price when supply is limited.
Cutting
Most drugs are “cut” to increase their volume and thus the suppliers’ profits. This can happen at any point in the chain, and more than once. There is evidence it can happen as many as five or six times before the product reaches street level. Sometimes cutting is in response to increases in the price a supplier has to pay for his supply, but this does not have to be the case.
Cutting agents can be anything that mimics the appearance or effects of the drug being cut. Cocaine is regularly cut at both wholesale and street level in the UK. There is less evidence of cutting taking place in the UK within the heroin market, particularly at wholesale level.
Further information
For more details on the threat that drug smuggling and trafficking poses, please see the drugs section of the UK Threat Assessment (765.62 kb PDF)
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