Nitrous oxide to be made illegal in months and users face two years in prison in drugs crackdown | The Sun
September 5, 2023"HIPPY crack" nitrous oxide will be made ILLEGAL by the end of the year, ministers confirmed today.
As part of a major drugs crackdown, anyone who inhales the gas faces two years behind bars.
Laughing gas is the third most used drug among 16 to 24-year-olds in England.
Ministers think it's responsible for yobs terrorising communities through anti-social behaviour.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman said: “The British people are fed up with yobs abusing drugs in public spaces and leaving behind a disgraceful mess for others to clean up.
“Earlier this year the Prime Minister and I promised a zero-tolerance approach to antisocial behaviour and that is what we are delivering. If you are caught using 'laughing gas' as a drug, you could be hit with a hefty fine or face jail time."
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Alongside jail time, Brits caught with laughing gas could be slapped with an unlimited fine.
For dealers, potential prison time stretches from two to 14 years.
Last month the government changed the law to give cops the ability to test people arrested for all Class A drugs, including ecstasy.
Over 50,000 drug tests for cocaine and opiates have been carried out in the past year.
Crime and Policing Minister Chris Philp said: "We cannot allow young people to think there are no consequences to misusing drugs.
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"There is no question that abusing laughing gas is dangerous to people's health and it is paramount we take decisive action before the situation gets worse.
"Not only are we making possession an offence for the first time, we are also doubling the maximum sentence for supply to 14 years, so the dealers profiting off this trade have no place to hide.”
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