A rise in party drugs like crystal meth and liquid ecstasy has sparked fears of chronic health issues and is costing health services £3.26million each year, a council report found.

Westminster Council commissioned the research – Party Drugs and High-Risk Behaviour – which shows a 200 per cent increase in new types of party drugs produced in Europe over the last three years.

Councillor Ian Rowley, who launched the investigation, said: “Most substance abuse services are geared towards the traditional hard drugs like heroin and crack cocaine, however what we have found is a worrying growth in the use of
so-called party drugs, with relatively few services available for users.”

The report found that coupled with a worrying lack of support services, many users do not consider themselves in need of help, with examples of high-functioning, middle class users who have been using party drugs for more than a decade before seeking help.

A 21-year-old university graduate from London commented in the report that ‘nearly everyone’ came into contact with party drugs and that they were used by students
‘to de-stress and chill out in clubs’.

Westminster Council funds the NHS Club Drugs Clinic at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital to combat the rise in use of recreational drugs used on London’s rave scenes.

Dr Owen Bowden-Jones, consultant psychiatrist and lead clinician at the clinic, said that three quarters of admissions came from homosexual males, aged between 30 and 50, who had a long-term dependence on drugs such as GHB, GBL, crystal meth and mephedrone.

The remainder of patients were from the heterosexual community, many of them young people, who took an overlapping range of narcotics such as mephedrone, ketamine, cocaine and so-called legal highs.

The report found that these types of party drugs are often consumed alongside alcohol.

There is not yet medical research to show the short and long-term health impacts on using several narcotics, but a cocktail of drugs allows individuals to stay awake for days on end, and when used extensively can lead to psychosis, organ failure and even death.

Westminster Council commissioned the report to understand what can be done to tackle the rise of drug use in the long run.

Mr Rowley said: “It is not a situation which necessarily needs more money, it requires smarter working between all of the relevant bodies, including universities, colleges, the NHS and councils, to take a more joined-up approach and ensure that right kind of services are there to help people.”