UK - Mephedrone, or 'meow meow', as popular as cocaine, drugs survey says

[edgarshade]

Guardian

Alan Travis Home affairs editor
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 28 July 2011 11.43 BST

With reader comments

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/jul/28/mephedrone-cocaine-drugs-survey

Mephedrone, the former legal high known as "meow meow", is as popular as cocaine among teenagers and young adults, despite being banned last year. according to official figures published today. Home Office figures drawn from the authoritative British Crime Survey estimate that around 300,000 16 to 24-year-olds, or 4.4% of their age group, used mephedrone in the past 12 months. This is a similar level of popularity to the use of powder cocaine by teenagers and young adults. The BCS survey, drug misuse declared 2010/2011, say that mephedrone and cocaine rank joint second in popularity behind cannabis for this age group. Mephedrone ranks alongside ecstasy in popularity among all drug users aged between 16 and 59, with 1.4% of all adults reporting they had used them in the past year.

The results of the annual survey of drug use in England and Wales show that almost 3 million people (8.8% of adults) used illicit drugs in the past year. They also show that one million of them – or 3% – used class-A drugs, with a fall in the use of cocaine accompanied by a rise in the use of methadone. Around 2.2 million people aged 16 to 59 used cannabis last year and the survey also indicates a rise in popularity in ketamine in recent years. The use of illegal drugs among the younger age group of 16 to 24 has, however, undergone a long-term decline, from 29% of the age group reporting they had used an illicit drug in 1996 to 20% in 2010/2011.

Home Office minister, James Brokenshire, denied that the alarming figures for the use of mephedrone, which was made illegal in April 2010, demonstrated that the ban had been ineffective. He said the BCS figures covered patterns of use before and after the ban had come into force. He stressed that just because a drug had been sold as a legal high it did not mean it was harmless.

But the interviews undertaken by the BCS for this year's report would have took place between April 2010 and March this year. Respondents were however asked about their illicit drug use in the previous 12 months, and so could have related to the period when mephedrone was a legal high.

 

[edgarshade]

This article is now in the Daily Mail. It's red/green arrow shooting time

"Dance drug meow meow now as popular among young people as cocain"

By Jack Doyle, Home Affairs Correspondent

Last updated at 1:18 AM on 29th July 2011


With reader comments

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2019821/Drug-meow-meow-popular-young-people-cocaine.html

LETHAL dance drug mephedrone is now as popular as cocaine among young people, figures revealed last night. More than one in 25 teenagers and young adults – nearly 300,000 people – admitted using it last year, making it the second most popular drug among those aged between 16 and 24. The British Crime Survey, which covers England and Wales, also showed a rise in cannabis use and a staggering 25 per cent increase in ketamine use.

Reader comments

call me evil, but i wouldn't really care if this stuff was made legal, if people are too stupid too take it more fool them if they die. in fact people may actually be taking responsibility for themselves.

- scott, london, 29/7/2011 00:23

People who take illegal drugs should stay locked up for five years or help antidrug police to locate and prosecute supplier. The same should then apply to supplier and his/her supplier. The prison should be more like a prison of war camp no tv no cigarettes no alcohol and no money to buy luxuries. Should not take to long to track down sources. Should visitors be suspected as having brought into the compound for inmates return visits should be made to the inmate with the visit paid to be made for a supervisors time and both inmate and visitor nude and sat apart.No modesty panels shields etc.

- John Grist, Clevedon, 28/7/2011 22:08

If you are stupid and fed up with life by all means take drugs. If you have more than three brain cells and can decide, then don't take them. If you take drugs please don't blame your childhood, others and your family and friends. Everyone has to take responsibility for their own actions and life. Don't expect the taxpayer and NHS to sort out your addiction problems afterwards.

- Christian Crusader, Mirambeau, France,

 

[after8mink]

I speculate that due to it being legal only a year ago and available in massive quantities, what's available is cheaper and more effective than coke. All they've succeeded in doing by criminalising it is pushing the price up and the purity down, but that's hardly a surprise.

 

[LogicSoDeveloped]

Mephedrone will easily become the next highly abused street stimulant alongside coke and meth.

 

[Ph0r.W3-R-m4ny]

Mephedrone will easily become the next highly abused street stimulant alongside coke and meth.

I would say it already has in a lot of places. I mean in the UK coke was already shit quality right? And even 'good' coke is cut with that deworming shit more often than not. And even if it doesn't have that shit in it, it's expensive and not all that great. Meph is way cheaper and lasts longer, and if you know your source, way more pure.

In areas with crystal, Iiiiii dunno so much.. meph still gives you that MDMA like feel the first dose or two, that gives it an edge on meth, but only for a short while.

oh well, another article showing the war on drugs only makes things worse.

and fuck those comments from the site wow what ignorant self righteous fools