Rise in cocaine user numbers

10 June 2009 06:15am

The number of people using cocaine is rising in all parts of England except London, research suggests.

In 2002/03, 55.7 people per 1,000 in England said they had ever taken cocaine, rising to 72.5 in 2007/08.

The number using the drug rose in all parts of the country except London, which saw a drop from 99.2 per 1,000 to 89.1.

However, the capital still had far more cocaine users than other parts of England.

The number of people across the country saying they had used cocaine in the last year rose from 18.4 to 21.5 per 1,000 people, data for the same period showed.

The figures were for those aged 16 to 59 and were published as part of a new report - Indications of Public Health in the English Regions.

Among those aged just 10 to 25, 7.3% of boys and 6.7% of girls in 2006 said they had ever used cocaine.

The study also showed that around 25% of 16 to 24-year-old men in the North West and Yorkshire and Humber had used cannabis in the previous year.

Among those aged 16 to 24, 15% had used the drug in the previous month.

London had the highest level of crack cocaine users, with an estimated 47,000 in the capital.

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