Deaths related to drug poisoning in England and Wales from 1993 to 2024, by cause of death, sex, age and substances involved in the death.

Deaths related to drug poisoning, 2024 registrations - Statistics on deaths related to drug poisoning are mainly based on the year in which the death was registered. This is because of long delays between the date these deaths occur and the date they are registered and received by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Registration data relate to the previous year, and occurrence data have a lag of an additional year to allow for inquest times. For example, in this release we have published 2024 registrations and 2023 occurrences.

• In England and Wales, 5,565 deaths related to drug poisoning were registered in 2024, the equivalent of 93.9 deaths per million people, and higher than the rate recorded in 2023 (93.0 deaths per million, 5,448 deaths); the age-standardised mortality rate for deaths related to drug poisoning has risen every year since 2012.
• Among males, there were 128.7 drug-poisoning deaths registered per million in 2024 (3,710 deaths), compared with 60.6 deaths per million among females (1,855 deaths).
• Of drug-poisoning deaths registered in 2024, 3,736 were identified as drug misuse, accounting for 63.1 deaths per million people; rates of drug misuse deaths continue to be elevated among those born in the 1970s, often referred to as "Generation X", with the highest rate in those aged 40 to 49 years.
• Just under half of all drug-poisoning deaths registered in 2024 were confirmed to involve an opiate and opioid (47.1%; 2,621 deaths), while 195 deaths involved a nitazene, which is almost four times higher compared with 2023.
• The North East continues to have the highest rates of deaths relating to drug poisoning and drug misuse (167.6 deaths per million people and 107.1 per million, respectively); East of England had the lowest rates for drug poisoning and drug misuse (66.3 deaths per million people and 40.2 per million, respectively).
• In Wales, there were 417 deaths related to drug poisoning registered in 2024; this is the equivalent of 140.4 deaths per million people, which is higher than the rate recorded in 2023 (129.2 deaths per million, 377 deaths)...