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Pubs Are Trialling Anti-Cocaine Spray In Their Toilets

Pubs Are Trialling Anti-Cocaine Spray In Their Toilets

The anti-cocaine spray has been designed to try and reduce the use of cocaine

Rebecca Shepherd

Rebecca Shepherd

Pubs have begun trialling an 'anti-cocaine spray' in an attempt to stop the Class A drug being taken on the premises.

The product - called BLOKit - is supposed to coat a surface (toilet cisterns, toilet seat, sink area for example) with an invisible film that makes racking up lines... well a little tricky to say the least.

Stock image.
Everynight Images/Alamy Stock Photo

Apparently, the powder will stick to the sprayed surface which, in turn, should make it hard to snort.

If they do manage to snort the coke, the drug taker will end up with a 'disgusting' taste that lasts for hours.

The spray is currently being trialled in 24 pubs around Darlington, north east England.

But some experts have questioned whether it's a waste of time - noting that people can snort coke straight off keys, the corner of their bank card or their phone as the surface.

Guy Jones, a senior scientist at drug testing organisation The Loop, asked: "Does anyone really snort off a cistern when they could just use a smartphone?"

He went on to tell Vice: "Keys are so widely known as a cocaine dosing tool that they have become a slang unit of measure.

"Short of following people into the cubicle, I don't see what pub landlords can be expected to do about people consuming such a popular drug."

BLOKit.
Amazon

Adam Waugh - who works for Psycare UK, a drug harm reduction charity - also questioned the effectiveness of the spray.

He said: "This is the latest in a long line of gimmicks which have been suggested by police could reduce cocaine use in pubs and bars.

"The problem is none of these initiatives reduce harmful drug use, at best they displace it. In reality they risk distracting from policies that can save lives."

It has been reported that Darlington Borough Council paid Millwood Manufacturing (the company specialising in making the spray) £650 for 60 bottles of the anti-drug deterrent spray.

West Mercia Police Crime Commissioner's official Twitter page put the question to people on social media and asked whether the trials will help deterrent drug users.

The poll results showed that 29.4 percent of people think it will have an impact while an overwhelming majority of 70.6 percent said they didn't think it would make a difference.

One user commented: "You have to stop the demand rather than the supply. As long as there's a demand, they'll find a way to manufacture it. No demand? Then there's no reason to make it."

Another added: "There is literally no way this will help. There has never been someone who has and wants coke and is like 'damn its mildly inconvenient to do drugs'."

Featured Image Credit: Alessandro de Leo/Alamy Stock Photo

Topics: News, Pubs, Cocaine, Drugs, UK