Written question asked by Lord Brady of Altrincham (Conservative) on Tuesday, 22 April 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 24 April 2008. It was answered by Lord Coaker (Labour) on Thursday, 8 May 2008 on behalf of the Home Office.

Cannabis

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of cannabis users were classed as regular users (a) in each year since 1996 and (b) at the latest date for which figures are available.

Answer

The British crime survey (BCS) only collects information about frequent drug use among young people aged 16 to 24 years. Questions on frequency of use in the last year were first asked in the 2002-03 BCS.Table 1 provides trend data between the 2002-03 and 2006-07 BCS for the proportion of cannabis users aged 16 to 24 years who reported to using cannabis frequently (more than once a month) in the previous year. The latest figures show that there was a statistically significant decrease in the proportion of 16 to 24-year-old cannabis users who report being a frequent user between the 2002-03 and 2006-07 BCS (from 46.1 per cent. to 37.0 per cent.).

Table 1: Frequent use in the last year among 16 to 24-year-old cannabis users, 2002-03 to 2006-07
Percentage
	Used more than once a month	Unweighted base
2002-03	46.1	743
2003-04	46.9	1,267
2004-05	41.1	1,348
2005-06	41.2	1,164
2006-07	37.0	1,069
Source:
British crime survey (BCS).

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 475 c1094W; 201691
Session: 2007-08
Subjects: Cannabis Misuse
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk

Cannabis

Secondary information

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