25 January 2008 - Drug use in Northern Ireland: First results from the 2006/07 drug prevalence survey

The Bulletin was published jointly with the National Advisory Committee on Drugs in Ireland and relates to a survey carried out jointly in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland between October 2006 and May 2007.

Key Findings

The key findings relating to drug prevalence in Northern Ireland in 2006/07 are:

• 28% of respondents aged 15-64 years reported taking any illegal drugs at some point in their life.
• Cannabis was the most commonly used illegal drug, with 25% of all adults reporting ever having used it; 7% reported use in the year before the survey; and 3% in the month before the survey.
• After cannabis, the most commonly used illegal drugs were: poppers (8%), ecstasy (8%), magic mushrooms (7%), LSD (7%), amphetamines (6%), cocaine (5%) and solvents (4%).
• Heroin and crack use were reported by less than 1% of the adult population (lifetime prevalence of 0.5% for heroin and 0.4% for crack).
• Illegal drug use is generally more common among men than women: 34% of men reported lifetime use of any illegal drugs compared to 22% of women; 14% of men reported last year use compared to 5% of women; and 5% of men reported last month use compared to 2% of women.
• However women reported higher lifetime prevalence rates than men for anti-depressants (28% compared to 13%) and sedatives and tranquillisers (22% compared to 18%). Similar patterns were evident for last year and last month use.
• Lifetime use of any illegal drugs was highest for respondents aged 25-34 years (42%) followed by use among respondents aged 15-24 (38%).
• The prevalence rates for last year and last month use of any illegal drugs were highest for the youngest age band (15-24 years) at 19% and 6% respectively.
• Use of any illegal drugs declined with age: 40% of young adults aged 15-34 reported ever using any illegal drugs compared to 19% of older adults aged 35-64.
• Comparisons between 2002/03 and 2006/07:
• Between 2002/03 and 2006/07, lifetime use of any illegal drugs increased from 20% to 28% and last year use increased from 6% to 9%
• Increases were observed for the lifetime use of the following drugs: cannabis (from 17% to 25%), cocaine (from 2% to 5%), magic mushrooms (from 4% to 7%), poppers (from 6% to 8%), LSD (from 5% to 7%), ecstasy (from 6% to 8%) and amphetamines (from 4% to 6%).

Notes to Editors:

1. The main focus of the survey was to obtain prevalence rates for illegal drugs, such as cannabis, ecstasy, cocaine and heroin, on a lifetime (ever used), last year (recent use) and last month (current use) basis. Similar prevalence questions were also asked for alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs (e.g. tranquillisers); attitudinal and demographic information was also sought from respondents.
2. The questionnaire and methodology for this survey were based on best practice guidelines drawn up by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA). The questionnaires were administered through face-to-face interviews with respondents aged between15-64 normally resident in households in Ireland and Northern Ireland.
3. Fieldwork for the survey was carried out between October 2006 and May 2007 and the final achieved sample was 6,969 (4,967 in Ireland and 2,002 in Northern Ireland). The response rate for the survey was 65% in Ireland and 62% in Northern Ireland.
4. To maximise its representativeness of the general population the achieved sample was weighted by gender, age and former Health Board Area in Ireland; and gender, age and Health and Social Services Board area in Northern Ireland.
5. The first Drug Prevalence Survey was conducted in 2002/2003. When comparing the findings from the 2002/03 and 2006/07 surveys, only those changes that are statistically significant at least at the 5% level are reported.
6. This publication is also available online at the DHSSPS website

Additional Information

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