Patrick Nulty (Dublin West, Labour)
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682. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if he will provide, in tabular form, the estimated street value of all illegal cannabis or cannabis derived substances seized by the State in the years 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012; if he will provide an estimate of the total size of the black economy in this area for the aforementioned years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27331/13]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will be aware, cannabis and substances and products containing cannabis are currently classified as controlled drugs under Schedule 1 of the Misuse of Drugs Acts 1977 and 1984. Unlawful possession, sale, supply etc of such substances are therefore offences under that legislation.

With regard to the size of the illegal drugs market and, in particular, the cannabis market, I am sure the Deputy will appreciate that given the clandestine nature of such criminal activity any estimate of the size of the market would be speculative.

I have requested that the information sought concerning cannabis seizures be compiled and forwarded to the Deputy when available.

I can assure the Deputy that drug law enforcement remains a key priority area for our law enforcement agencies and the Government as part of the overall comprehensive approach in tackling the problem of drug misuse under the National Drugs Strategy 2009-2016.

Furthermore, drugs and organised crime continue to be prioritised by An Garda Síochána through An Garda Síochána’s Policing Plan for 2013. In this regard, targeted intelligence-led operations such as Operation Nitrogen, which has a particular focus on the identification and dismantling of cannabis cultivation sites across all areas of the country, continue to yield significant results.