Written question asked by Nigel Evans (Conservative) on Monday, 4 February 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 7 February 2008. It was answered by Lord Coaker (Labour) on Monday, 18 February 2008 on behalf of the Home Office.

Drugs: Smuggling

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent support (a) her Department and (b) police forces have offered to the Government of Colombia in combating the smuggling of illegal drugs across the Colombia-Venezuela border.

Answer: [holding answer 7 February 2008]: Preventing the cross-border flow of illicit drugs from Colombia to neighbouring countries is a top priority for the UK's international counter-narcotics efforts. The UK is investing in projects in Colombia and Venezuela to tackle the cross-border flow of illicit drugs. These projects have helped to build capacity among Colombian and Venezuelan law enforcement agencies and the judiciary. In addition, funding of a United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime project on cross-border co-operation has recently been approved.We take a broad regional approach to tackling the trade in illicit drugs, through a mixture of political engagement, capacity building and law enforcement support in producer, transit and consumer countries. This includes working with Governments of other producer and transit countries in Latin America and countries along the main trafficking routes for drugs via the Caribbean and West Africa.

Secondary information