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Irish crime journalist Paul Williams asks whether Europe’s drugs wars are out of control.

Gangland killings in Ireland and death threats to journalists more than 20 years after the assassination of crime reporter Veronica Guerin mask a much bigger problem. The bloodshed in Ireland has its tentacles across Europe where law enforcers struggle to contain an out of control drugs war. Here, Veronica’s friend, colleague and fellow crime reporter Paul Williams looks at the continent’s drug crime hotspots and examines the different policies used to control the illegal sale of drugs across Europe.

Paul will ask if the different policies implemented by EU countries serve to make controlling the illegal market almost impossible for the authorities. A complex criminal matrix draws in vulnerable people and extortion, with violence and even murder regularly at the heart of the battle between those profiting from the importation and sale of illegal drugs.

This programme looks at the situation in Holland, Portugal, Britain, Switzerland, Italy, Sweden and Ireland. It examines whether parts of the UK could follow Portugal’s decriminalisation model and asks why Holland has become a hotbed of violent attacks over drugs. Other areas of discussion include exploring if Sweden’s zero tolerance approach works, how the taking of so-called ‘spice’ is becoming a major problem in some countries and how technology is enabling the illegal drugs market to be controlled from inside prison in parts of Europe.

Paul examines what has changed, whether the authorities are succeeding and ultimately whether the battle to control the movement and sale of illegal drugs can ever really be won.

A Made in Manchester Production for ´óÏó´«Ã½ World Service.

(Image: Major drugs haul seized by federal police force. Credit: Getty Images)