Drug poisoning deaths registered in the UK reached 5,519 last year, a 55% increase over the past decade, according to government data. The figures show an alarming upward trend, with people in their 40s experiencing the highest mortality rates.
Drug misuse accounts for two-thirds of deaths
Misuse of illegal drugs was responsible for 66% of all poisoning deaths, claiming 3,615 lives – a 3% drop on the previous year. The remaining deaths involved prescription medications, accidental poisonings, and over-the-counter overdoses.
In Merseyside, 236 people died from drug poisoning last year, up 17% from 201 in 2024 and the highest number since records began in 1993. Of those, 133 were caused by drug misuse, four fewer than in 2024 and the lowest number since 2021.
Cocaine now the most-mentioned substance
For the first time since records began, cocaine was the most frequently mentioned individual substance on death certificates, linked to 1,233 deaths in 2025 – more than eight times as many as in 2010. Broader opioids, including heroin and methadone, remained the deadliest overall substance group, mentioned in 2,324 deaths.
Liverpool had the highest drug poisoning mortality rate in Merseyside, with 231 deaths in the last three years, including 75 last year – a rate of 17 deaths per 100,000 people. St Helens followed with 16 deaths per 100,000, then Wirral at 15.
Age and gender patterns emerge
People aged 40 to 49 – younger members of Generation X and older Millennials – suffered the highest mortality rates at 147 deaths per million, a rate they have consistently held as this generation has aged. In contrast, Generation Z, now typically aged 20 to 29, experienced 46 deaths per million, meaning someone in their 40s was three times more likely to die from drug poisoning. Men accounted for the vast majority of deaths, dying at more than double the rate of women.
Robin Pollard of the drug and alcohol support charity WithYou warned that cocaine has become cheaper, purer, and far more easily available across Britain. He said: "Across almost all areas where WithYou deliver services, we hear that cocaine has become far more prevalent. Whereas before 2020, we typically would have seen the price of a gram of cocaine being around £100, it is much more common to hear it being available for £60 a gram or less now, and available to buy in ever smaller amounts. It has also become easier to purchase in all parts of the country, has become increasingly socially acceptable, and of higher purity."
Pollard added: "We also know that cocaine use tends to be associated more with men, but they can be more hesitant to access support for their drug use. There is often a perception that there is no treatment for cocaine use, but there are many support options available, and anyone who is worried about their drug use, or that of someone close to them, we are here to help. Our webchat, available at wearewithyou.org.uk, offers free, confidential advice from expert recovery workers."
Zaheen Ahmed, head of drug therapy at national addiction treatment providers The UKAT Group, said: "While drug poisoning deaths have fallen nationally by a marginal 0.8%, that offers little comfort to communities where deaths are continuing to rise. This is a stark reminder that the UK's drug crisis is far from over, and that where you live can determine the level of support available to you."
