Senior govt drugs adviser arrested in crack cocaine raid

Police detained a senior Home Office civil servant from the department’s drug and alcohol unit on Thursday on suspicion of supplying Class A and Class B drugs.

Nigel Voden, 48, was detained when police raided flats in Harrow, northeast London.

“We went to an address in Harrow as part of an ongoing investigation,” a Scotland Yard spokesperson told the Telegraph.

“Four men aged 18, 25, 37 and 48 were arrested on suspicion of possession of Class A and Class B drugs with intent to supply. All four were later bailed to come back to us in December.”

Voden is reported to be a former immigration officer and chairman of the Home Office’s group for gay, bisexual and transgender staff.

He recently worked on a project to reform the late night levy, under which bars and clubs can be charged by local councils for staying open late.

The Home Office confirmed to the Telegraph that a member of staff had been suspended. “It would not be appropriate to comment further as it is now a matter for the police,” it said.

“The Home Office expects the highest standards of personal integrity from all its staff.”

A Home Office report published in July suggested there has been a decline in drug use among youngsters, but a rise in middle-aged adults taking illegal substances.

The number of 16- to 39-year-olds taking illegal drugs was down from 17.4 percent in 1999 to 13 percent in 2014-15, the report found.

However, drug use among 40- to 59-year-olds had risen from 2.5 percent to 3.6 percent.

In the past year, over half a million middle-aged adults aged 40 to 59 took illegal drugs, with nearly 92,000 using cocaine and 400,000 smoking cannabis.