Legal high stash shocks Farnham councillor

A councillor in Farnham was shocked to discover a large stash of used legal high canisters on an area of local heathland.

Farnham’s town and borough councillor, John Fraser, was walking on heathland near to his home in Upper Hale collecting litter when he stumbled across a pile of canisters that had contained the legal high nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas. He also found similar stashes of the canisters around the Six Bells roundabout during two previous excursions.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that legal high drugs are having a significant impact upon the UK’s police forces and a blanket ban on the dangerous substances will soon come into force. At present, nitrous oxide is legal to inhale but selling it to anyone under the age of 18 is against the law.

Mr Fraser said, ‘I was shocked to find people are inhaling a poisonous gas that is essentially diesel fumes and I’m sure fellow Farnham town councillors would agree with me. I have found three caches over the last three weeks and I suspect there are many more. Only when someone dies is any notice taken of the danger.’

He spoke of how powerless the police are to take action against legal highs until the new legislation comes into effect and how the current legal system needs to work more quickly. A spokesman for Surrey Police echoed these sentiments but confirmed the police are working closely with Trading Standards to tackle the problem of legal highs.