FOI release

Financial cost of Acquisitive Crime caused by Class A Drug users in the UK

25778 We have a received a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 for the following:  1) What is the total financial cost of loss…

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25778

We have a received a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 for the following: 

1) What is the total financial cost of loss/damage from acquisitive crime caused by Class A drug users in the UK (per year)?

2) What is the total financial cost (per year) of the Home Office Drug department(s): staffing, salaries & pensions, bonuses, insurances, utilities, paperwork, postal services, asset  management, buildings, rent, taxes, loans, consultation, marketing, plus any other related costs etc etc etc

We released the following information on 29 January 2013.

 

 

1) The most recent estimate of the annual social and economic cost of Class A drug use in England was £15.4 billion, for the year 2003/04. Of this, problematic drug use (defined as use of heroin and/or crack cocaine) accounts for 99% of the total, and the costs of Class A drug-related crime is 90% (estimated £13.9 billion) of that total.

Furthermore, the most recent Home Office research estimated that between a third and a half of all acquisitive crime is committed by offenders who use heroin, cocaine or crack cocaine. There are no equivalent figures for Class B and Class C drug use.

2) The allocated budget for the Home Office Drugs and Alcohol Unit for the 2012/13 financial year is -

Admin: £1.817m
Of which pay is £1.737m
           Of which non-pay is £79k

Programme: £600k
            System for temporarily banning legal highs is £200k
            Alcohol is £400k

Updates to this page

Published 29 January 2013

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