Cocaine use leads to record number of drug deaths

Drug poisoning deaths have reached their highest level in 30 years in England and Wales, driven by a 30% rise in cocaine-related deaths.

According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the highest rate of drug-related deaths is still among “Generation X” men, particularly those aged 40 to 49.

Cocaine deaths in 2023 were nearly ten times higher than a decade earlier, claiming more than 1,100 lives.

The government has not yet commented on the latest figures.

Change Grow Live, a charity that provides drug and alcohol treatment, said the “devastating loss of life” was “deeply sad, unnecessary and unacceptable”.

It said “mental health issues, financial difficulties, inequalities and dangerous synthetic drugs” were fueling the rise.

The statement called on the government on October 30 to increase public health grants in the budget and said harm reduction services must reach those most at risk.

A total of 5,448 deaths related to drug poisoning were recorded in 2023, an increase of 11% compared to the previous year and the highest since records began in 1993.

Almost half involved an opiate such as heroin, while the number of cocaine deaths rose for the twelfth year in a row.

The North East recorded the highest rate of drug poisoning deaths by region for the 11th year in a row, three times higher than London, which had the lowest rate.

Charities have warned that drug deaths could continue to rise as more people use powerful synthetic opioids such as Nitazene, which are much stronger than heroin.

ONS data showed that 52 nitazene-related deaths were recorded in 2023, up from 38 the previous year.

Martin Powell, from the charity Transform, which campaigns for drug regulation, suspects the rise could be due to cocaine having a higher degree of purity, leading users to use it more often and with other substances.

He said this could be an unintended consequence of the government’s recent crackdown on cutting agents such as benzocaine.

Vicky Unwin’s daughter Louise was 21 when she drowned in the bathroom after a ketamine overdose in 2011. She said she was “really dismayed” by the recent rise in drug deaths.

“She [Louise] “I had weighed the drugs that night and if she had known the correct purity level I think she would have been safe,” Vicky said.

“It’s heartbreaking…like many children, she didn’t know these details. Every day in the clubs people take drugs that are contaminated by default because they don’t know where they come from.”

She has campaigned for drug awareness to become part of the curriculum and would like to see more services such as the Safer Drugs Consumption Facility in Glasgow. where people can consume illegal drugs under the supervision of doctors.

The BBC has contacted the government for comment.

In a statement last yearThe previous Tory government said there were no plans to decriminalize drugs given the harm involved, such as “the danger posed by organized criminals”.

The 10-year drugs strategy included plans to help people get into treatment and recovery and to tackle the supply of illicit drugs.