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Table SZR-0. Seizures of illicit drugs [see all tables in this series...]
Part (ii) Methodological comments
| Country | Methodological comments: geographical coverage, double-counting, inconsistencies and other methodological issues | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Bulgaria | National coverage. | Double-counting between different agencies is possible however quantities are considered not significant. 2002 data refer only to seizures made by NACOC. | |
| Czech Republic | National coverage. | Accurate data are not available before 2002 due to double counting of seizures by police and customs reports. | |
| Denmark | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Germany | National coverage. | Numbers of seizures are based on police register. | |
| Estonia | National coverage. | All law enforcement agencies (LEA) report under the same forensic institute, there is a general reporting system for all agencies, no double-counting. The majority of drug seizures are made by the police. | |
| Ireland | National coverage. | No double-counting; all data provided derives from the Forensic Science Laboratory although some of the substances may have been seized by either Customs or Police but the seizure agency is not distinguished in the reported data. Not all drugs seized by law enforcement (Garda Síochana and Customs) are necessarily analysed by the Forensic Science laboratory. If no individual is identified in relation to the drug seizure and no prosecution takes place, the drugs may not be reported. Cocaine and crack seizures are reported together. | |
| Greece | National coverage. | No double-counting. Over the period 1985 - 1994 only police seizures are included. Since 1995 seizures of all LEA are included. | |
| Spain | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| France | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Italy | National coverage. | No double-counting; all data provided derives from the Central Directorate for Anti-Drug Services, Ministry of the Interior | |
| Cyprus | National coverage. | In 2008 number of seizures were not available. | |
| Latvia | National coverage. | No double-counting; all data provided derives from State Police Forensic research department / electronic (LUPA PRO) | |
| Lithuania | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Luxembourg | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Hungary | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Malta | National coverage. | Since 2007 data, both number of seizures and quantity seized, are not submitted | |
| Netherlands | National coverage. (29 reporting agencies) | Both 2004 and 2005 data are based on seizures made only by some police forces: they are not comparable between them, nor with previous years. In 2007, 23 of the 29 agencies reported all data. In 2008 the real number of seizures is unknown. Registration methods and definitions differ per police region, which leads to unreliability in the information and makes it difficult to interpret the figures. We truncate the figures and seizures less than 10kg/liters are not reported. Due to different methods and definitions among agencies and among the years, figures do not permit conclusions about developments and trends. They must be seen as a minimum estimate of seized drugs in the Netherlands. Due to inadequate coverage (4 out of 25 police-regions did not report (all of the) seizures) data are considered too unreliable to be reported. Data are incomplete for the last years and situation did not show an improvement in 2009. | |
| Austria | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Poland | National coverage. | Double - counting is possible due to the participation of two LEA (Police and Border Guard) in the same intervention. Up to 2003 the number of large seizures only is reported; from 2004 all seizures are reported. | |
| Portugal | National coverage. | Seizures that involve more than one substance are counted in each of the categories involved. | |
| Romania | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Slovenia | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Slovakia | National coverage. | Data are not available before 2000. | |
| Finland | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Sweden | National coverage. | No double-counting. Cocaine and crack seizures are reported together and cannabis plants are included in herbal cannabis. | |
| United Kingdom | England and Wales both police and customs and Scotland and Northern Ireland only police seizures. | Before 2006 data have been reported on a calendar year basis. Since 2006 seizures data will be published on a financial year basis (Data reported for 2006 is for 2006/07, data reported in 2007 is for 2007/08 and so on). There are no customs data for Scotland and Northern Ireland in 2006. In 2007, 2008 & 2009 data are available for England, Wales and Northern Ireland only; no data for Scotland is available. (England and Wales reported both police and customs seizures and Northern Ireland only police seizures). In 2006 Scotland accounted approximately for 10% of the total number of seizures although for some drugs this is higher; cannabis resin (25%) and heroin (20%). No double counting; seizures from joint operations involving HM Revenue & Customs and the police are usually recorded against HM Revenue & Customs | |
| Croatia | National coverage. | No double-counting | |
| Turkey | National coverage. | No double-counting. Over the period 1985 - 1994 only police seizures are included. Since 1995 seizures of all narcotics units (TPN's) are included. In 2009 data includes both narcotics units (TPN's) and police stations actions. This change is likely to affect comparability across time. Due to difficulties in measuring/counting cannabis plants quantity is not available. Crack is included in cocaine cases and captagon tablets mainly with amphetamine content considered as amphetamine tablets. | |
| Norway | National coverage. | No double-counting |
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