L

Lord Hanson of Flint (Lab)

Speaking in the House of Lords on 3 September 2025

Debate

Nitrous Oxide Misuse: Drivers

Contribution

The noble Lord tempts me into areas which are clearly not part of my responsibilities, but within the bits that I am responsible for, nitrous oxide—with the legislation passed by the previous Government, with opposition support—should be a policing matter and a priority. We are trying to support that. With the addition of 3,000 neighbourhood police officers this year, and another 9,000 to 12,000 over the next three years, there is greater opportunity for police officers to identify where nitrous oxide is being used for illicit purposes locally and to look at potential solutions in areas where balloons are being used in traffic or, indeed, where abuse is given to staff. With intelligence gathering, they can look at acting in an appropriate way to build a community plan to tackle those specific problems in those specific areas to reduce crime, improve public confidence in policing and tackle anti-social behaviour.

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