European drug policies: the ways of reform

The drug control regime established by the international community has not succeeded in curbing either the demand for, or the offer of, narcotics.

But, despite a series of developments in the Americas, there is still little support in Europe for repealing drug-prohibition laws.

Nevertheless, a gradual policy convergence reveals the emergence of a European model favouring public-health strategies over a strictly penal approach to combating drugs whilst growing trans-national support for legalisation indicates the persistence of an alternative paradigm for drug policy.

This book examines the various influences on drug policies in Europe; as the impetus for drug policy changes from grassroots movements, NGO networks, private foundations and academic research centres among others, are increasingly confronting the prevailing discourses of drug prohibition and criminalisation.