Britain uses most cannabis

In particular, cannabis use in Britain among young people is higher than anywhere in Europe, with 19.2 per cent of 15 to 34-year-olds using it last year.

In addition, four per cent of young Britons used cocaine in the last 12 months.

As a result, we spend the most on treating addicts, a study by the European Union's official drugs agency has revealed.

The annual study is the most comprehensive picture of drugs use across Europe yet produced, and comes amid moves in many countries to relax cannabis laws as well as vast increases in efforts to detect the major suppliers of hard drugs.

The report suggests drugs are more widespread in northern European countries. Addiction is also at higher levels in these countries than in the south - yet some countries, such as Sweden, are largely unaffected.

The findings are likely to be used by advocates of a softer line on the law relating to drugs possession as evidence that countries with liberal policies generally have less drug use than Britain.

The director of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drugs Addiction, which produced the study, warned it showed a rising tide of drug use among the young.

"Drug use among young people has risen steadily in the 15 EU states over the last decade," said Georges Estievenart.

"Despite some signs of stabilisation among mainstream young people in some western European countries, there is no evidence of a significant overall reduction, especially among those most at risk."

Other countries with similar levels of cannabis use to Britain included France, where it was 17 per cent, Spain (17.3 per cent) and Ireland (17.7 per cent), while in the Netherlands - where its use is not an offence - it was 11.8 per cent. One per cent of Swedes used the drug.

The report said Denmark and Britain shared the highest levels of cannabis use among the total population, with 30 per cent of all adults in both countries having tried it at some time.

Recreational drug use among young people in the form of cocaine, amphetamines and ecstasy is also higher in the UK than almost any other country.

The study found that four per cent of Britons aged 15 to 34 had taken ecstasy in the past 12 months. Only Ireland had a larger percentage - 4.9. In Italy and Greece, the figure was less than 0.25 per cent.

But cocaine use is more evenly distributed. The four per cent of British young people using it compares to 1.9 per cent in Germany, 4.75 per cent in Spain and 2.67 per cent in Ireland.

Amphetamine use - although unpopular in Greece, France, Italy and Portugal, where fewer than one in 100 young people had used it - was at its highest in Britain at four per cent, followed by Ireland (2.8 per cent).

In Britain there are 6.9 "problem" drug users for every 1,000 people of working age - more than almost any other EU country. We spent £324million in 2000- 2001 treating users through the NHS, compared to £143million in France.