One harmful drug whose usage has increased in recent years is Nitrous Oxide, also known as laughing gas.  Over the last few years, I have observed more small silver canisters littering our town which is a sad reminder that this anti-social activity is taking place.  In September 2021, the Home Office asked the independent Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to review the harm caused by Nitrous Oxide, after it was reported that over half a million young people took the drug in 2019-20.

The sale of Nitrous Oxide for its psychoactive effects was made illegal after the Psychoactive Substances Act in 2016, but it is not currently a crime to be caught in possession of the drug, despite the fact that inhaling Nitrous Oxide can cause serious long-term health impacts.  When taken directly from a larger silver cannister, the health impacts can be more severe and more instant.

My colleague, dedicated Three Bridges Councillor Brenda Burgess, has observed many of these canisters in Three Bridges and had discussed with me what we might be able to do to help tackle this problem.  I think there can be more public messaging about the health dangers but what we have observed is how freely available these canisters appear to be.

We therefore brought a motion to last month’s Full Council meeting at Crawley Borough Council, seeking whole Council (cross-party) support to lobby the government to speed up the review into Nitrous Oxide and to bring forward legislation this year to ban direct consumer sales and make possession of Nitrous Oxide illegal, except for clear legitimate purposes.

I’m pleased to say we gained that support and as far as I’m aware, we are the first Council to directly lobby the government on Nitrous Oxide.  While I believe we are knocking at an open door with the government, highlighting our concerns can only help.  I was further pleased to see Nitrous Oxide raised as a concern at Prime Ministers Questions last week. I’m not naïve enough to think we will easily solve this problem, but our actions will help address it.   

Councillor Duncan Crow, Leader of Crawley Borough Council Conservative Group

8th March 2023