Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the sale of drug paraphernalia in high street retail outlets on levels of drug use among young people.

Under Section 9A of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (“the Act”), a person who supplies or offers to supply any article which may be used (or adapted to be used) in the unlawful administration of a controlled drug, is guilty of an offence.

An exception is made in the Act around the provision of hypodermic syringes, and there are further exceptions in the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001, for the provision of certain articles when provided in the context of drug treatment.

Enforcement is a matter for the police.