ADDICTS AGED 13 BUYING COCAINE ONLINE

CHILDREN as young as 13 are becoming addicted to cocaine as the price drops to an all-time low, according to Scotland’s largest drugs charity.

Official research suggests that the illegal Class A drug can now be bought for only £30 a gram – equivalent to £2 a line.

Last night, the charity Addaction warned that the drop in price means the drug is increasingly being abused by young people – including children only just into their teens.

It revealed that 13-year-olds are now seeking help to treat serious cocaine habits.

The charity also warned that the

explosion of social media means young people can use smartphones to access an easy and unregulated marketplace for cocaine.

Sites used by millions of teenagers, such as Instagram and Snapchat, are being used to advertise illegal drugs; while encrypted messenger apps such as Wickr and Kik are used to arrange deals.

New Addaction figures show growing numbers of ever younger children in the grip of cocaine.

In the past 18 months, the charity’s South Lanarkshire service has helped 62 children under 16 deal with drug and alcohol problems. A majority of 15 and 16-year-olds reported frequent use of cocaine.

It also revealed increasing numbers of even younger people were taking cocaine, with several 13-year-olds being treated.

Addaction manager Jacqueline Baker-Whyte said: ‘The people taking cocaine are far younger now. We recently had to lower the age for our services from 14 to 13, so we could help younger children.

‘Our workers have had a number of 13-year-olds attend the service to get help with their cocaine habits. This is such a shift. I have worked in addiction services for over 20 years and, going back, it wasn’t heard of really for young people.

‘Cocaine was expensive, it was only for people with money and it wasn’t accessible. But now it is far cheaper, although this normally means the quality is poor.

‘Quite simply, it has become trendy. It’s socially acceptable – it’s not seen as bad. Many youngsters turn their nose up at the word heroin, saying it’s only junkies who use it – then go and snort lots of cocaine. Never have we seen so many people coming to the door looking for support for cocaine. Never.

‘The problem with young people is their brains are still growing, and this is such a bad drug for mental health. It makes you very paranoid, the come-down is terrible, it causes insomnia and some people become suicidal.

‘Some areas in South Lanarkshire are very rural – and if there’s an issue there, you can bet any money there’s an issue in most places, especially major cities. If we don’t act and invest money, it is only going to get worse.’

Scottish Drugs Forum national training and development officer Katy MacLeod said: ‘The market can be described as lower grade cocaine, referred to as “council” – which is £35-50 per gram – and higher purity cocaine, called ‘proper’ – at £70-100 per gram.

‘The purity can fluctuate massively, from single figure percentages to over 90 per cent.

‘There is some likelihood a younger audience is more likely to buy drugs in newer ways, simply due to greater computer usage and online literacy.’

Scottish Tory justice spokesman Liam Kerr said: ‘Apps are useful for people who need goods or services quickly but I don’t think developers would have envisaged such a foul misuse of their technology.

‘Selling cocaine is an evil trade, made much more loathsome when children are also being exploited. I would urge parents to check the apps their children access.’

A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘We continue to do all we can to prevent substance misuse.

‘We have invested £746 million to tackle problem alcohol and drug use since 2008, with the bulk going into local prevention, treatment and recovery support services. We are also investing an additional £20 million a year to support our substance use strategy.’

Last week, a National Records of Scotland report found a record 934 Scots died from drug overdoses in 2017. Cocaine was implicated in or potentially contributed to 176 (19 per cent) of the deaths. Three of those who died were 14 or under.

‘Selling cocaine is an evil, loathsome trade’