The British government on Wednesday announced a bill to ban the so-called “zombie drug” xylazine and 21 other medications in a bid to cut deaths and crack down on criminal gangs.

This very strong animal sedative, also known as “tranq,” often leaves people taking it for long periods of time feeling numb and skin lesions that do not heal.

According to the UK Home Office, it is increasingly being used in combination with opioids such as heroin, and traces of it have also been found in marijuana vaporizers.

Scientists from King’s College London said the drug was “widely distributed” on the UK’s illegal drug market.

Other drugs that will be banned include new varieties of nitazenes – highly addictive synthetic opioids that can be hundreds of times more potent than heroin and easily lead to overdose.

The UK Misuse of Drugs Act recognises three separate categories of ‘controlled drugs’, with Class A drugs being considered the most dangerous and subject to the harshest penalties.

The new law would make xylazine a Class C drug. Anyone caught producing or supplying a Class C drug could face an unlimited fine, imprisonment for up to 14 years, or both.

The Home Office said other countries that have seen a rise in xylazine abuse, including the United States, where xylazine overdose deaths increased 30-fold between 2018 and 2021, had not yet taken similar action.

“We’ve seen what happens in other countries where the use of these drugs is allowed to get out of control. That’s why we’re one of the first countries to take action and protect our communities from these dangerous new drugs,” said Police Minister Diana Johnson.

“The changes being introduced this week will also make it easier to prosecute suppliers who attempt to circumvent our controls,” she added.

© 2024 AFP