Cardiff cannabis 'cheapest in UK'

Cannabis resin in Cardiff is being sold for half the national average

Cannabis on sale on the streets of Cardiff is the cheapest in the UK, a new survey has claimed.

A report for the charity Drugscope found that cannabis has been selling for £20 per ounce - less than half the national average of £42 per ounce.

The charity has its concerns over the availability of other drugs too.

It is claimed ecstasy in Cardiff is the second cheapest in Britain at 80p and there is increased use of the hallucinogenic club-drug ketamine.

The charity's magazine Druglink spoke to 40 frontline drug services in July 2005 to gather the information for this year's survey.

The use of the veterinary medicine ketamine as a social drug is not currently illegal, but the Home Office is considering reclassifying it as Class 'C' by the end of the year.

One drug worker, who wished to remain anonymous, said: "People aged between 18 and 25 are taking ketamine for a more 'trippy' night out."

Cannabis leaf prices in Cardiff suggest resin quality is poor

In Cardiff it is more expensive than the rest of the UK. A gram is currently selling for between £40-50, where the UK average is a little over £31.

Its increased use in Cardiff is against a background of the decreased use of other drugs like amphetamine and LSD, which have practically disappeared from the survey altogether.

Drumlin Editor Harry Shapiro said the survey shows that national prices have remained stable since 2004, but he added that "we are seeing significant regional variations across the UK".

"In Cardiff we are seeing cheaper cannabis resin than anywhere else in the UK and an extremely cheap market in ecstasy tablets.

"In addition to this, the emergence of ketamine as a key substance of choice is an entirely new phenomenon since the last survey, when it didn't figure at all."

The emergence of significantly lower prices for cannabis resin in Cardiff is down to two factors, according to Jeffery Ditchfield, a pro cannabis campaigner who runs a cafe in Rhyl.

"£20 per once for cannabis resin is very cheap compared to the rest of the country, where I imagine the average price to be somewhere around £40," he said.

Comparing resin to herbal cannabis, it's like saying both white spirits and vodka are alcohol Pro cannabis campaigner, Jeffery Ditchfield

"And there's two factors that could affect it. One is availability, and if there's enough to make that difference in price, something serious is going on in Cardiff, and the other is quality.

"Cannabis resin is made up of less than ten per cent cannabis anyway," he added, "the rest is ketamine, plastic to give it shape, diesel to make it oily and henna and coffee to give it colour, so it's not very good anyway.

"Comparing resin to herbal cannabis, it's like saying both white spirits and vodka are alcohol

"So if the price for herbal cannabis is the same as the rest of the UK, you have to look at the quality."

In Cardiff the price of herbal cannabis is higher than the average, suggesting the quality of the resin is much poorer.