DRUG MARKETS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT

Abstract

This paper examines the market in illegal drugs, law enforcement counter-measures, and their interaction in Britain. Doubt is cast on the conventional view that the drug market is monopolistic, dominated by a few big suppliers. A diverse set of enterprises, best distinguished by their qualitative features rather than their size, is described. These enterprises are faced by law enforcement agencies that have at their disposal formidable legislation which provides for life imprisonment and confiscation of assets of drug distributors. The British post-war history of legislation against distributors has been one of increasingly punitive measures, and although there is no evidence that this has restricted the distribution networks, it may have contributed to the increasing professionahzation of the trade. The authors conclude that drug control policies would be more effective if less enthusiasm were expended in raising levels of penalties and more attention paid to the ways in which an irrepressible market may be shaped in more or less harmful forms by legislation and policing strategies.

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