New Home Office figures show ketamine has overtaken amphetamines as a popular illegal party drug in England and Wales, with police-recorded possession offences up 151% over five years while amphetamine offences have more than halved. The trend has alarmed health experts and treatment providers, who warn the drug's low cost and easy availability are drawing in growing numbers of young people despite serious health risks, including bladder damage, memory loss and potential fatality.

Police recorded 1,845 ketamine possession offences in 2025-26, up from 735 in 2020-21, while amphetamine offences fell from 2,576 to 1,209 over the same period. Merseyside had the highest rate of offences of any force, nearly three times that of the Metropolitan Police, though the true scale is likely understated due to Home Office counting rules. Fewer than a third of cases result in a charge, with nearly half settled through informal disposals such as community resolutions. Researchers at King's College London have linked 696 deaths to illicit ketamine since 1999, including celebrities such as The Vivienne and Matthew Perry, and government advisers have so far declined to reclassify the drug from Class B to Class A.