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School Children and Drugs

A Department of Health Study has found that more than one in five under-15s had tried drugs in the past year. The number of 14-year-old girls who admitted using drugs jumped from 25% to 29%, outstripping boys the same age at 27%.

Concerning the Government's policy on drugs, a Tory Health spokesman said, "They downgraded the classification of cannabis, making it more acceptable and now the negative repercussions are evident to all."

Overall, 21% of under 15s said they had taken illegal substances in 2003, a rise of 1% on the previous year. Cannabis was the most frequently abused drug. One teenager in six smoked it despite scientific evidence that it dramatically heightens the risk of mental illness.

Young people are also experimenting with Class A drugs, the study found, with one in 25 children from 11 to 15-year-olds having tried Ecstacy, cocaine or heroine.

However, the number of 16 to 24-year-olds taking drugs has fallen from 30% in 2002 to 28% last year. Almost half of all youngsters say they have tried drugs at some point and one in 12 had used Class A drugs in the previous year.

A spokesman for the pressure group Family and Youth Concern said, "These are very disturbing figures and underline the failure of the Government's strategy to discourage young peole from taking drugs. Moves to decriminalise certain drugs and downgrade the classification on others send out a mixed message that will inevitably sow seeds of confusion in the minds of young people and give the impression that drug-taking is not a serious issue."