Drug dealers have been sent a clear message this week by Sussex Police to get out of the county.

Dozens of people have been arrested in a two-day blitz of raids, with drugs worth thousands of pounds recovered.

Brighton and Hove is a tempting target for dealers in London. It takes them an hour or so to reach the resort by train or on the A23.

That is why officers were at the railway station and along London Road to check them trying to smuggle in heroin and crack cocaine.

Hard drugs are big business in Brighton and in many other parts of Sussex. In the city alone, £1 million a week is spent on them.

Behind that bald statistic lies misery, not only for the addicts but also for their families and the people they rob to feed their habit.

The link to crime was shown up in the raids, which revealed many stolen objects, including cars and several weapons.

This week the supply of drugs into Sussex was sharply reduced.

These raids are expensive both in money and manpower but they are extremely effective and must be repeated regularly.

Dealers will then understand there is no hiding place for them in Sussex, a county that will not tolerate their evil trade.