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Australian Crime: Facts and Figures 2002

Drug-related statistics

This section is in two parts. The first part is based on 'consumer' and 'provider' arrests for illicit drugs in Australia, using data from the Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence. (Consumers are those who are caught in possession of drugs for personal consumption; providers are those arrested for drug dealing and trafficking.) The second part details trends in illicit drug use based on the 2001 National Drug Strategy Household Survey and the AIC's Drug Use Monitoring in Australia (DUMA) project.

The Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence has reported drug arrest and seizure statistics since 1992. Following is an overview of arrest patterns for offenders between 1995-1996 and 2000-2001.

Information on arrests is available for the following types of drugs:

  • cannabis;
  • heroin (and other opioids);
  • amphetamines;
  • cocaine; and
  • other drugs (not defined elsewhere).

Cannabis arrests include expiation notices, drug infringement notices and simple cannabis offence notices. Offenders involved in drug arrests are divided into two categories:

  • consumers - persons charged with user-type offences (for example, possessing or administering drugs for own personal use); and
  • providers - persons charged with supply-type offences (for example, importation, trafficking, selling, cultivation and manufacture).

In the case of a person being charged with consumer and provider offences, the provider charge takes precedence and the person is counted only as a provider of that drug.

The 2001 National Drug Strategy Household Survey was conducted between July and October of 2001. Almost 27,000 Australians aged 14 years and over were surveyed about their experience, knowledge and attitudes towards drugs.

This section details:

  • recent use of illicit drugs;
  • the proportion of the population who used cannabis, heroin, amphetamines, designer drugs, cocaine or hallucinogens; and
  • the proportion who reported injecting drugs.

The AIC's Drug Use Monitoring in Australia (DUMA) project monitors illicit drug use among police detainees in several sites across Australia. DUMA provides a reasonable and independent indicator of drug-related crime within these specific areas. As an ongoing monitoring system, it enables law enforcement to track long-term changes in drugs and crime. 2001 was the third year of data collection in the DUMA project, and funding has been provided by the Commonwealth Attorney-General's Department for a further two years. Between 1999 and 2001, four sites were monitored: East Perth in Western Australia, Southport in Queensland, and Bankstown and Parramatta in New South Wales. From 2002, three new sites will be included in the project: Brisbane in Queensland, and Adelaide and Elizabeth in South Australia.