New figures have revealed that in Wales there has been a 67 per cent rise in drugs-related deaths.

There were about 61 such deaths in Wales in 2006 according to statistics from the International Centre for Drugs Policy but the figure had reached to 102 in 2009.

The UK is suffering from these deaths and they are a major problem in UK, according to researchers and in England and Northern Ireland also such a rise has been witnessed.

According to the Welsh Assembly Government, to figure out if it was an emerging trend, it was too early.

Across the UK, half the deaths happened due to heroin and morphine while a reduction in deaths was seen from cocaine, amphetamines and ecstasy-type drugs.

Coroners to the International Centre for Drugs Policy provided the figures.

While the deaths rose in Northern Ireland, Wales and England, deaths in Scotland remained broadly the same.

Professor Hamid Ghodse, director of the International Centre for Drug Policy (ICDP) at St George's Hospital, London, said, “The continuing rise was very concerning. The effectiveness of both drug abuse prevention and treatment is reflected in the mortality data, so we know we still have a major problem.”