Interesting data you may have missed from the world of alcohol and other drugs over the last month Part of a regular series.

1. Interesting things you
may have missed
October 2015
Andrew Brown

2. Samples of drugs in prison tested by the Forensics
Early Warning System
Samples from prisons from the
South West and North West of
England in 2014/15.
“The aim was to find out which
NPS were being used in prisons
and whether or not they were
controlled. The majority of the
substances recorded were not
controlled and were mixtures of
more than one different
compound. The most commonly
identified drugs from this data
were 5F-AKB-48 and 5F-PB22,
which are both synthetic
cannabinoids.”
Source: Annual report on the Home Office forensic early warning system (FEWS) -
September 2015

3. The number of years lost due to ill-health, disability or early death
caused by alcohol and drug misuse in England by level of deprivation
Source:
http://ihmeuw.org/
3o8y
Most deprived
Least deprived

4. 3 in every 1,000 people is an injecting drug user in the UK (and
accounts of 34% of injecting drug users entering treatment in Europe)
Source:
http://www.emcdda.europa.
eu/publications/rapid/2015/d
rug-related-infectious-
diseases-in-europe

5. Alcohol and drug misuse related deaths in Northern
Ireland
80% of all drug related
deaths in Northern Ireland in
2014 are attributed to drug
misuse.
In 2014 the median age for
an alcohol related death was
56 years, and was 37 for a
drug misuse related death.
25% of drug misuse deaths
also recorded the presence of
alcohol.
Source: http://www.nisra.gov.uk/demography/default.asp30.htm

6. Drug misuse and Alcohol related deaths per 100,000 of population in
Northern Ireland in 2014 by deprivation quintile
Source:
http://www.nisra.gov.uk/demography
/default.asp30.htm
More deprivedLess deprived

7. Identified needs of homeless in Scotland and reasons
for being unable to maintain accommodation
Source: http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Housing-Regeneration/RefTables/PublicationTables2014-15
NB: respondents were able to identify more than one reason

8. About one in seven people know a drug driver, and one
in five a drink driver
Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/think-drug-driving-
evaluation-2015
Spending on THINK! drug
driving campaign - February
and March 2015
Radio £223,107
Digital - display and
partnerships
£277,592
Digital - biddable
(YouTube)
£371,431
VoD £29,759
Washroom panels £132,800
Regional press £33,210
Total £1,067,899

9. County lines - the use of mobile phone ‘lines’ to extend
drug dealing business into new locations
Estimated profit
£21,000 a week
“The line (i.e. the telephone number that is marketed and that the users call) is
the lifeblood of the group’s activity in the county force and represents a brand
rather than an individual...
“It is common for an established line to have more than 10,000 incoming
communications a month and a group may run multiple lines in different
areas.”
Source: NCA Intelligence Assessment
County Lines, Gangs, and
Safeguarding

10. Perception that perpetrators of violent crime are
under the influence of alcohol or drugs in Scotland
The risk of violent crime decreases with
age from 8% for those aged 16-24, to less
than 1% for those aged 60 or over, and
that males (4%) are at a higher risk of
violent crime than females (2%).
The 2012-13 Scottish Crime and Justice Survey estimates
that victims thought that the offender was under the
influence of alcohol in 59% of violent crime, and drugs in
29% of violent crime.
Source: Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2014-15

11. Drug offenses in Scotland
Drug offences decreased 17% over the ten
year period from 2005-06 to 2014-15,
but has increased by 3% from 35,616 in
2013-14 to 36,836 in 2014-15. These
crimes have increased for two
consecutive years, and are now at the
highest level since 2009-10.
38% of the national increase in Drug
crimes was in the Renfrewshire local
authority area. Police Scotland advise
that the increase in drug related crimes
in Renfrewshire relates mainly to the
possession of drugs, recorded as a result
of pro-active and intelligence led policing
activity, including stop and search
patrols in hotspot areas.
Source: Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2014-15

12. Outcomes assigned to drug offences in England and
Wales in 2014/15
(1) Offences asked to be taken
into consideration by a court
(TICs).
(2) Includes caution - adults;
caution - youths; Penalty Notices
for Disorder
(3) Includes cannabis/khat
warnings and community
resolutions
(4) Includes not in the public
interest (CPS); Not in public
interest (Police); Offender Died;
Prosecution prevented (suspect
under age; suspect too ill;
victim/key witness dead/too ill);
Prosecution time limit expired
(5) Includes evidential difficulties
where the suspect was/was not
identified and the victim does not
support further action
Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/crime-outcomes-in-england-and-wales-2014-to-2015

13. The use of Penalty Notices for Disorder (on the spot
fines) in England and Wales
Source: Criminal justice system statistics quarterly: December 2014
One new PND offence was
introduced from 24 June 2014 -
Khat possession.
Ten PNDs were issued for Khat
possession in 2014.

14. Use of 'on the spot' fines for issues to do with alcohol (other
than being drunk and disorderly) in England and Wales
Source: Criminal justice system statistics quarterly: December 2014

15. Area (in hectares) of Afghanistan under cultivation for
opium
Sources: http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2015-09-04/8452/
http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/drug-trafficking/central-asia.html
“Every year, approximately 375
tons of heroin flow from
Afghanistan to the rest of the world
and Southern Afghanistan acts as
the primary heroin manufacture
and export point towards Iran and
Pakistan. Approximately 160 tons
of heroin was trafficked through
Pakistan in 2009, putting an
estimated $650 million in the
pockets of drug traffickers. 115 tons
of heroin was estimated trafficked
into Iran towards Turkey and
Western Europe.”

16. Use of two or more substances by individual SDQ
scales among 15 year olds in Scotland in 2013
“An abnormal, or
borderline, conduct
score was most
strongly associated
with the use of two
or more substances,
while the
association with
emotional or peer
problems was
weaker.”
Source: http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2015/09/8649/downloads#res484688

17. What would happen to life expectancy in Northern
Ireland if deaths from external causes were halved?
“if half the number of people that
died from alcohol related diseases
across the period, male life
expectancy would have been 0.2
years higher and female life
expectancy would have been 0.1
years higher. The largest increase
would have been achieved by
reducing smoking related
mortality to zero, increasing male
life expectancy by 2.5 years to 80.2
years.”
Source: http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/index/statistics/health-inequalities/life-expectancy-decomposition.htm

18. Women in Prison
4,359The number of women in prison in England,
Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland as of
31.7.15
Source:
http://www.prisonstudies.org/sites/default/files/resources/downloads/world_female_impr
isonment_list_third_edition_0.pdf

19. The proportion of users that become dependent and
how long on average that dependency lasts
“The numbers imply that
the expected duration of
dependence per beginning
cigarette smoker is 12.8
years, per beginning alcohol
drinker 3.9 years, per
beginning cocaine user 1.3
years and per beginning
cannabis smoker 1.1 years.”
Source: http://www.degruyter.com/view/j/nsad.2015.32.issue-4/nsad-2015-0034/nsad-2015-0034.xml?format=INT

20. Punitive opinion in Britain, 1980-2013
There was “a steady
increase in punitive
attitudes towards crime and
punishment of offenders
from the early 1980s to
mid-2000s, but a
substantial shift towards
more liberal attitudes on
crime (as well as greater
confidence in the criminal
justice system) since
around 2005.”Source:
http://www.crimeandjustice.org.uk/sites/crimeandjustice.org.uk/files/Economy%20and%
20crime%20briefing%20note%2C%20Sept%202015.pdf

21. Deaths in custody in England and Wales for the first six
months of 2015
Source: http://www.howardleague.org/weekly-prison-watch/

22. Injection of NPS in Wales
Source: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/rapid/2015/drug-related-infectious-
diseases-in-europe
“Injection of cathinones,
particularly in the groin area has
led to an increase in physical
impacts: granular/gritty lumps
under the skin, profound
bruising, abscesses, deep vein
thrombosis, long-term stays in
intensive care units of up to 3
months, amputations, severe
weight loss and requirement for
major reconstructive surgery to
femoral veins. Increased injection
rates were also noted, going from
approximately 3 up to 15–20
times per day.”

23. Impact of street prostitution zones
Opening of a tippelzone [street
prostitution zone] in a city is associated
with
a 30% − 40% decrease in sexual
abuse and rape in the first two
years of opening
a 25% decrease in average citywide
drug crime and this result persists
over time but only in cities which
enforced a licensed tippelzone from
the start
Source: http://newsroom.iza.org/en/2015/09/24/street-prostitution-zones-make-cities-safer/Source: http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/davehillblog/2015/sep/10/tory-
mayoral-hopeful-wants-managed-street-prostitution-area-in-london