Illegal Drugs/Contraband

HC Deb 22 January 2003 vol 398 cc326-7W

Dr. Julian Lewis

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the totals of (a) ships intercepted and (b) seizures made of (i) contraband and (ii) illegal drugs by the Royal Navy in each of the past five years. [91241]

Mr. Ingram

The information requested as regards seizures of illegal drugs by the Royal Navy over the last five years is as follows.

£
Date	Ship	Value	Type
May 1999	Marlborough	1 billion	Cocaine
November 1999	Northumberland	135 million	Cocaine
July 2001	Coventry	80 million	Cocaine
July 2002	Newcastle	1.5 million	Marijuana
July 2002	Newcastle	42 million	Cocaine
September 2002	Grafton	—	Marijuana
October 2002	Grafton	65 million	Cocaine

However, statistics relating to ship interceptions and seizures of contraband are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.