THE number of successful drug seizures conducted by South Yorkshire Police rose by nearly a third last year, new figures show.

It comes as authorities across England and Wales seized over 119 tonnes of illegal drugs, with a street value of at least £3bn, in the year to March 2024.

This includes 5,017 individual drug seizures in South Yorkshire, a 30 per cent increase on the previous 12 months, but a nine per cent decrease on the same period a decade ago.

In the year to March, officers in South Yorkshire seized 5kg of powdered cocaine, less than a kilogram of heroin and 83kg of herbal cannabis.

Minister for migration and citizenship Seema Malhotra said the government was determined ‘to protect the public from illegal drugs which pose a threat to people’s lives’.

She added: “These statistics send a clear message to organised criminal gangs that they will be caught and face the full force of the law if they try to smuggle drugs into our country.”