GOVERNMENT CRACKDOWN ON LEGAL HIGHS

SELLERS of “hippy crack” for recreational use will face up to seven years in prison under a government crackdown on legal highs.

Peddling nitrous oxide – also known as laughing gas – will be made a criminal offence under new laws published today.

The move is one of a string of tough proposals to tackle the trade in legal highs in the UK, with ministers also announcing that police will be given powers to shut down websites which sell them.

As well as newly created synthetic drugs, the legislation will cover the sale of “psychoactive” substances which have been used as intoxicants for several years – such as nitrous oxide and the party drug “poppers”.

Sold in balloons for about £2 per dose, users breathe in laughing gas to feel euphoric and relaxed.

A number of footballers have been photographed apparently inhaling the substance, which is not il- legal but is seen as potentially dangerous by experts.

The Home Office said selling nitrous oxide for legitimate food processing, medicinal and industrial purposes will not be affected by the ban. Personal possession will not be an offence under the new laws.

The Psychoactive Substances Bill will introduce a blanket ban on the production, distribution, sale and supply of legal highs – officially known as new psychoactive substances (NPSs) – after they were linked to scores of deaths.

More than 500 new drugs have been banned by the government.