Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the contribution of 1 December 2014 by the Minister for Crime Prevention in the First Delegated Legislation Committee, how much her Department spent on public awareness campaigns on legal highs aimed at (a) UK festivals, (b) fresher's week and (c) school holidays in the last year; and what estimate she has made of the number of people reached in each period.

On 30 October the Government published its response to the new psychoactive substances review expert panel’s report. We set out new actions across legislation and enforcement as well as prevention, health services and
information-sharing. This will enhance the comprehensive approach that the UK Government has already taken to further reduce the threat to the UK posed by new psychoactive substances, which have been associated with paranoia,
psychosis, seizures, dependence and fatalities.

The Department has spent £89,455 on public awareness campaigns on NPS (New Psychoactive Substances), or so-called ‘legal’ highs, in the last year.

The objective of the campaign activity was to deter "contemplators" and "dabblers" from trying or taking NPS by:

• Raising awareness of the risks, consequences and harms of NPS use amongst those contemplating using these drugs
• Increase contemplation of the risks and dangers of NPS
• Signposting FRANK as a source of information about NPS

The table below gives a breakdown of the timing, target audience and percentage of target audience reached: