The Home Secretary is facing calls to ban direct-to-consumer retail sales of laughing gas, also known as nitrous oxide. The British Compressed Gases Association has written to Suella Braverman on the issue.
Nitrous oxide is typically released into balloons from small silver canisters by users and then inhaled, giving temporary feelings of relaxation and euphoria. However, prolonged use of the drug can cause vitamin B12 deficiency, anaemia and nerve damage.
The gas can also lead to spinal injuries, with doctors warning over the possible effects last month. Ellen Daniels, chief executive of the trade body which represents the UK’s compressed gas industry, said: “We congratulate the new Home Secretary on her appointment and hope that she will continue to engage with us regarding the health and social harms posed by nitrous oxide and consider whether retail sales of the gas should be banned.”
Last year the Home Office asked the independent Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs to review the harm caused by nitrous oxide as the Government sought advice on whether to make possession of laughing gas a crime. It came after a rise in its use among young people.
The substance is the second most-used drug among 16 to 24-year-olds in the UK. There were 36 deaths in Great Britain associated with nitrous oxide between 2001 and 2016, according to the Office for National Statistics.
However, drug experts have said a ban would be “completely pointless” and a “waste of time”.The sale of nitrous oxide for its psychoactive effects is illegal but it is not a crime to possess the drug.
Nitrous Oxide bought by young people is often in small silver chargers, or canisters, which are intended to be used to aerate cream for desserts. The gas is also used medically as an anaesthetic, given for instance to women in labour.
A Home Office spokeswoman said: “It is unlawful to supply nitrous oxide for its psychoactive effects, with offenders potentially facing a maximum sentence of seven years in prison.
“Given concerns about the use of nitrous oxide by young people, the former home secretary sought advice from the independent Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) last year. When the ACMD responds, the Government will consider the advice carefully.”
