SNP poised to back decriminalisation of controlled drugs
POLICY SHIFT EXPECTED IN BID TO TACKLE CRISIS
THE SNP is set to adopt a significant shift in drugs policy by calling for the decriminalisation of controlled substances, the Record can reveal.
The move to support relaxing the law of possession and consumption of drugs is expected to be passed at the party’s conference in Aberdeen this weekend.
It is a major win for a campaign championed by the Daily Record to tackle Scotland’s drug-death toll and push the focus from justice to health.
Drugs law is still controlled at Westminster but the policy will help put pressure on the UK Government to transfer some responsibility to Holyrood.
Glasgow Central MP Alison Thewliss, who is supporting the conference proposal, said: “What Scotland faces in drug deaths is a public health emergency but the UK Government continues to
block plans to take vital action.
“The status quo is not an option. People are dying on our streets yet the Tories at Westminster sit on their hands.
“If the UK Government refuses to act, it is clear we need to devolve drugs law so the Scottish Parliament can shape the vital steps to tackle drug-related deaths and harm in Scotland.” The motion on drugs policy was lodged in conference papers, which have been seen by the Record. It repeats demands for “safe consumption rooms” to be set up in Scotland, so users can take drugs in a controlled environment. But in an amendment, SNP branches in Leith, Portobello and Craigmillar spelled out what Holyrood should then do with devolved power. They said the law should be used “to allow for decriminalisation of possession and consumption of controlled drugs so that health services are not prevented from giving treatment to those that need it”. Drug policy will be the second item on the agenda when the conference begins on Sunday. Pressure from the Record has already brought together politicians and people with lived experience of drug addiction. The Scottish Government set up an expert group to help tackle the scandal, and took part in a meeting hosted by the Record at Holyrood last month. The response was stepped up when official figures confirmed 1187 people in Scotland died from drugs in a year, putting the country among the worst in the developed world. The NHS and Glasgow City Council have called for safe consumption rooms in the city. The facilities would be supervised, with experts saying it will also help reduce the risk of infection.