Much greater effort needs to be made to reduce the use of drugs and alcohol in juvenile prisons, caretaker justice minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin said on Tuesday.

Hirsch Ballin was reacting to a report by Utrecht University researchers which showed 90% of drugs users have access to cannabis while in jail.
The research, based on the experience of 155 juvenile offenders, showed over 25% had drunk alcohol while in jail and 66% had used soft drugs.
The research also showed young teenagers with criminal convictions are more likely to drink alcohol and use drugs than their peers.
Half of 13 and 14-year-olds who ended up in detention had used drink and drugs in the month prior to their incarceration, compared with just 5% of the teenage population at large.