] Date: Fri, 25th July, 1997 Source: The Scotsman, Edinburgh, UK Contact: Netherlands adds UKP1 bn illegal earnings to official economy The illegal earnings of drug dealers, prostitutes and gamblers has been included in the latest official figures on the Dutch economy. According to a government report, approximately UKP1 billion is earned from drug dealing, UKP300 million from prostitution and UKP200 million from illegal gambling. The sale of stolen goods is believed to have contributed UKP56 million to the Dutch economy. In total this represents 1 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The Netherlands is the first country to officially publish its illegal earnings. "We were going to keep the figures quiet but somehow they got onto the Internet, so we decided to go public," a government spokesman said. Other European countries are expected to investigate illegal earnings as a result of a ruling by the Commission of European Communities which states that in future all member countries must include illegal earning in their national accounts. Britain is preparing its figures on illegal earnings, but is likely to have a tougher time producing statistics than the Netherlands, which tolerates prostitution and soft drugs. Estimates were partly based on tax paid by prostitutes and the sale of cannabis in coffee shops. Information on hard drugs was collected from health and social care agencies as well as the police. The annual income from the domestic consumption of the drug ecstasy totalled about UKP60 million. Export sales are estimated at UKP26 million. Estimates on prostitution were based on PhD theses and essays. "It's a very popular theme for academics," said the report's author, Ron van der Werf. "The estimate did not include lingerie and other objects connected to the profession because they are registered under household consumption." The Dutch government has every reason to feel cheered by other Treasury figures. The rate of economic growth for the Netherlands in 1996 turned out to be 3.3 per cent the strongest increase in the Netherlands since 1990. The rate of growth in the Netherlands is almost twice the average of the European Union as a whole (1.7 per cent) and the public sector deficit fell to 2.3 per cent.