'The cannabis pandemic, like other challenges to public health, requires consensus, a consistent commitment across the political spectrum and by society at large.'
Mr Costa, head of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, said that coherent anti-drug policies could cut supply, demand and dealing, and added: 'If this does not happen, it will be because some nations fail to take the drug issue sufficiently seriously and pursue inadequate policies.'
And, launching a UN report that found Britain is the largest European market for many drugs and that cannabis users here consume more of the drug than those abroad, he declared: 'Many countries have the drug problem they deserve.'
The highly outspoken criticism from Mr Costa contrasts with careful UN attempts not to criticise individual countries in the past. It clearly singles out Britain, the only country to push through major changes to its cannabis laws over the past five years.
His reference to party politics points the finger at Labour and the Home Secretaries who have either regraded the legal status of cannabis or refused to reverse the decision: David Blunkett, Charles Clarke and John Reid.
Mr Blunkett first mooted the reclassification of cannabis from Class B to Class C in January 2001, saying the change would save police time and allow them to concentrate on dealing and more serious drug offences.
The switch, which means those caught with small amounts of cannabis are highly unlikely to be arrested and tried, was put into effect in January 2004.
Less than 15 months later Mr Blunkett's successor Charles Clarke called on Government advisors for a rethink because of growing evidence of links between cannabis and mental illness, and because of the increasing availability of very powerful strains of the drug.
But at the beginning of this year Mr Clarke accepted advice that he should not change the law back on the grounds that to do so would cause even more confusion.
Since then the new Home Secretary, Mr Reid, has given the law another twist by radically reducing the proposed amounts of cannabis someone would need to have to be considered a dealer. Selling drugs brings far more severe treatment than simple possession and jail sentences of up to 14 years.
The UN criticism appears to reflect frustration that the Government is swayed by arguments that say using cannabis is a matter of minor importance and that the drug is far less harmful than, for example, alcohol.
Mr Costa said in Washington that cannabis is now a much more powerful drug than in past decades and that 'it is a mistake to dismiss it as soft and relatively harmless.'
He also warned that cocaine use in Western Europe has reached 'alarming' levels.
The UN report accepted European Union findings that Britain, followed closely by Spain, has the highest levels of cocaine abuse in Europe and added that this country is also the biggest market in Europe for heroin and amphetamines.
Mr Costa said of the growth of cocaine consumption: 'I urge European Union governments not to ignore this peril.
'Too many professional, education Europeans use cocaine, often denying their addiction, and drug abuse by celebrities is often presented uncritically by the media, leaving young people confused and vulnerable.'
Early indications of the impact of reclassification of cannabis in Britain suggest that use among young people has widened. Detailed analyses of evidence have, however, yet to be published.
Mr Costa criticism means the UN believes that British liberalism on cannabis has helped spread abuse of the drug not just in this country but across the developed world. Some 162 million people used the drug in 2004, he said, and consumption was continuing to grow.
The UN report said: 'All available indicators suggest that the expansion of cannabis use over the last decade was stronger than increases for opiates or cocaine.
'As the risks posed by cannabis consumption become clearer, our ignorance of this health issue begins to look particularly alarming.'
It said health risks of cannabis had been under-estimated, and linked the drug to psychosis in vulnerable individuals and aggravation of symptoms of schizophrenia. The report said the drug could also produce 'negative acute effects' including panic attacks, paranoia and psychotic symptoms.
The report added that 'the lack of international consensus' had impeded progress in dealing with cannabis and called for new international deals to tackle it.
A spokesman for the Home Office said cannabis use in Britain had dropped by a sixth among young people between 1998 and 2004. 'Cannabis is harmful and illegal and no-one should take it,' he said.
But Tory Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said: 'The Government’s seriously confused course of action on cannabis has led to chaos and confusion in the enforcement of drug laws. This in turn has lead to a continuing failure to reduce this dangerous threat to lives.'
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