The number of drug deaths registered in England and Wales remains stubbornly high, new data has shown.
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), 5,519 drug-related deaths were recorded in 2025, a slight fall from the previous year’s record of 5,565 poisonings, and the first annual drop in the mortality rate since 2012.
In separate data published in April, the ONS estimated that drug-related crimes are at the highest level in over a decade, with 230,783 taking place in 2025, up from 195,613 in 2024.
Males accounted for 72.5 per cent of last year’s deaths (2,622). The ONS observed a widening gap over time, where “the male rate was 2.3 times the female rate in 2025, compared with 1.5 times the female rate in 1993”, when the data series began.