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National Audit Office Press Notice

HM Customs & Excise: The Prevention of Drug Smuggling

Report by the Comptroller and Auditor General

HC 854 1997/98
15 July 1998
ISBN: 0102996989
Price: £8.15

Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today that HM Customs and Excise are surpassing their targets for drug seizures, and the prevention of drug shipments into the country. Assessing the Department's impact on the availability of drugs in the United Kingdom is more difficult, especially as a number of other agencies also contribute to the task.

Within the national strategy for dealing with the problem of drug misuse in the United Kingdom , as set out in the White Papers "Tackling Drugs Together" (Cm 2846, May 1995) and "Tackling Drugs to Build a Better Britain" (Cm 3945, April 1998), HM Customs and Excise have the lead responsibility for preventing the illegal importation or exportation of drugs.

On the seizure of drugs, Sir John found that:

• based on provisional results for 1997-98, the Department prevented drugs worth £3.3 billion from being imported and dismantled 130 drug smuggling organisations. This well exceeds their targets of £1.7 billion of drugs prevented and 108 organisations dismantled;
• although the number of seizures has remained relatively stable during the years 1989-90 to 1997 98, all other indicators show a significant increase in the second half of the period as compared to the first. The average value of a drug seizure has risen by 74 per cent (from £46,200 to £80,400 at 1997-98 prices); the average annual weight of cannabis seizures has increased by 97 per cent, of cocaine seizures by 54 per cent, of heroin seizures by 139 per cent, and seizures of synthetic drugs (which include Ecstasy) have increased over sixfold; and
• the Department's performance has been achieved through the more effective use of their resources, particularly reflecting the focus of the Department's strategy of targeting known or suspected smugglers. Per £1 spent by the Department, the value of drugs prevented from entering the United Kingdom has increased from £4 to nearly £19 over the last nine years.

On limiting the United Kingdom's exposure to illegal drug imports, Sir John noted that:

• the clandestine nature of the drugs trade and the resulting lack of reliable information, together with the difficulty of isolating the Department's contribution from that of other agencies, inhibit the assessment of the Department's impact;
• the Department have been unable to assess how far increased seizures indicate success in inhibiting the illegal trade in drugs as a whole, or might instead reflect a general increase in that trade; and
• trends in street level prices of drugs over the last nine years do not suggest that, nationally, supply has become more restricted relative to demand.

The Department are developing a range of additional performance measures to demonstrate further their effectiveness, for example with respect to disruption of the illegal drugs trade caused by their overseas activity. Within the strategy now proposed in "Tackling Drugs to Build a Better Britain", Sir John recommends that the Department should:

• aim to provide a broader assessment of their effectiveness. They should report on the extent to which they not only disrupt the illegal drugs trade, but also hinder its ability to adapt to and circumvent enforcement measures;
• ensure that their performance measures properly reflect the full range of their drugs enforcement work. These should give due weight to preventive measures, like collaboration with the freight and transport industries, as well as to results based directly on drug seizures; and
• carry forward their plans for measures to reflect the increased emphasis placed on international co operation. This will help the Department to set the right priorities between collaborative work with overseas agencies, and work at national level.

Notes for Editors

The Comptroller and Auditor General, Sir John Bourn, is the head of the National Audit Office employing some 750 staff. He and the NAO are totally independent of Government. He certifies the accounts of all Government departments and a wide range of other public sector bodies; and he has statutory authority to report to Parliament on the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which departments and other bodies have used their resources.

Press Notice 52/98
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