Police should be resourced to fight a synthetic drug feared 50 times stronger than heroin and already killing users in Kent, it has been claimed.

That was the message from Liberal Democrat group leader at Kent County Council, Cllr Antony Hook, as grim new statistics emerged around deaths from nitazene.

Official figures show the super-strong drug has claimed 54 people, half a dozen in the south-east, in the past six months.

The opioid is even stronger than fentanyl, which is wreaking havoc in the United States, and is thought to be manufactured in China.

Cllr Hook said: “Police must be properly resourced to deal with this drug and to smash the gangs pushing this stuff.”

The growing issue of nitazine was brought to the attention of Kent County Council’s scrutiny committee in July when it was reported drug deaths in the county are on the rise.

Kent Police has identified two deaths in recent years linked to nitazenes and are now routinely testing batches of recovered heroin for the drug.

Kent officers are also regularly speaking to counterparts from other forces to share intelligence on the opioids.

Currently, the drug is more likely to be in the supply chain in the midlands and the north although a major police bust, which found 150,000 nitazene tablets, was made in October in east London.

They were discovered in a “factory” where the pills were being manufactured with £60,000 cash and £8,000 in cryptocurrency also recovered. There were 11 arrests.

It comes as the supply of heroin from Afghanistan - Europe’s principal source - has been severely disrupted by the Taliban which is trying to eradicate the cultivation of heroin poppies.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) told the BBC that the nitazene death toll could be even higher as 40 further cases awaited testing.

It is suspected that heroin is being adulterated by man-made opiates, with addicts unaware of the strength of what they are taking.

Official figures to 2020 show there were 182 drug-related deaths in Kent - then a record high - but in the first six months of this year, there have been 115 fatalities.

Kent’s public health officials say powerful synthetic opioids such as fentanyl are being used to adulterate supplies. The issue of nitazine was raised by KCC’s public health consultant, Jess Mookherjee.

Nitazine has been seen in the illicit drugs market for two years and, according to the NCA, there have been 17 deaths in the West Midlands in the last six months compared to six in the south-east.

The opiates were developed 70 years ago as a powerful pain-killing medicine but were so potent and addictive they were never licensed for medical use.

Cllr Hook said: “This is very worrying and I will be asking what KCC can do to increase awareness and vigilance.

“We also need to launch an information programme for children and young people. It is very, very worrying.”