One in four children aged 13 to 16 has tried illegal drugs according to a new Home Office survey. The most popular drug among the 2,500 children questioned was cannabis. A quarter of 13-year-olds and half of 15-year-olds have taken drugs.
The figures are backed up by the British Crime Survey of England which found that almost half of 16- to 24-year-olds had dabbled with drugs. The numbers taking cocaine have tripled in the past two years to 3 per cent.