The number of deaths caused by cocaine and ecstasy have reached record-breaking levels, new Government figures reveal.
Deaths are up 1,200 per cent since records began in 1993. The drugs claim 300 lives a year according to figures from the Office for National Statistics published today.
Critics say cocaine and ecstasy have been glamorised by celebrities who use them as ‘party’ drugs.
Drug charities warned of an ‘epidemic’ of recreational drug deaths as young Britons emulate stars such as Kate Moss, Pete Doherty and Amy Winehouse.
Clare McNeil, of drug treatment charity Addaction, told the Daily Mail: “Cocaine is seen as a middle-class drug associated with success and money.
“People think they can copy celebrities and do a quick line because it doesn’t have the same stigma as other class As but it’s actually just as destructive.
“People are often ignorant of the risks of combining alcohol with cocaine for example, which can increase the risk of liver and heart disease, strokes and epilepsy.”