CANNABIS use has dropped by a quarter in the South East, according to new data from the Office for National Statistics.

The proportion of 16 to 59-year-olds using the drug has decreased from 11.1 per cent in 1996 to 8.3 per cent this year.

The region still has the second highest number of cannabis users in the country, and the drug is more popular here than in London.

The figures were published in the Government’s latest crime survey, which reveals the number of people who reported using illicit drugs in the last year.

“More people take cannabis than any other illegal drug.

Martin Mutungi, 28, is the co-founder of Brighton-based cannabidiol (CBD) company Legally Green.

He said: “Cannabis is still prevalent in Brighton.

“People say they take it to relax, to help them sleep, and to deal with a large number of issues.

“It’s legal in many places, from Turkey to California, and it’s only a matter of time before it’s legalised here.

“But I imagine those people who were taking cannabis when they were a bit younger have grown up a bit. As you get older you get more control over yourself. It could be that young smokers have just become more mature.”

Martin, whose online store sells CBD oil and “vape juice”, suggested that cannabis users could be giving up the drug altogether, or switching to CBD products.

While almost all cannabinoids are controlled substances under the Misuse of Drugs Act, CBD is not.

Martin said: “CBD is very popular in Brighton.

“It’s a hemp product derived from plants in the cannabis family. It works miracles.

“And it’s all above board. We don’t sell anything with an illegal THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) content.

“The products we sell have no psychotic effects.”

Cannabis website We Be High lists Brighton as a hotspot for the drug.

It said the city is so tolerant the drug is “virtually legal”.

Users on the site said it is easy to find a dealer, and that cannabis is readily available on the seafront in the evening. The site also commended the city’s homegrown drugs.

Cannabis is now a Class B drug: it is illegal to possess, give away, or sell, and possession can result in up to five years in prison.

In July, Sussex Police seized drugs with a street value of more than £34,000 from a cannabis factory in a quiet residential street in Brighton.