TORIES’ DRUGS ROOM U-TURN
ROSS BREAKS RANKS WITH LONDON Party won’t oppose consumption rooms
THE Scottish Tories have issued a defiant snub to Boris Johnson by removing their opposition to drug consumption rooms.
Leader Douglas Ross has signalled a break from the UK Tory party’s rigid refusal to support the life-saving measure – supported by all the other political parties at Holyrood.
The U-turn last night saw the Tories say they will not oppose plans for an “overdose prevention facility” if it is put forward in the parliament.
The move will be seen as a major rebuke to Prime Minister Johnson and drug campaigners hope it will put pressure on the Westminster Tories to finally support the measure.
Glasgow City Council is desperate to press ahead with a drug consumption room in the city, where addicts could inject drugs in a safe place under medical supervision.
It’s hoped the measure would be a major step forward in slowing down Scotland’s soaring drug death record – the worst in Europe.
However, opposition from the Tory UK Government has stopped the move from happening as they are in charge of drug laws across the UK.
Now the Tories in Scotland are set to back the measure in a major U-turn. Ross said his party would not oppose plans for an “overdose prevention facility” – despite still having concerns about how it would work in practice. He said: “We have reviewed the evidence from experts such as FAVOR UK and, if the Scottish Parliament scrutinises a proposal for an overdose prevention facility pilot, we will approach it with an open mind. “At the outset, we will not oppose the introduction of an overdose prevention centre in Scotland, and neither should the UK Government.
“But we continue to have serious reservations and practical concerns about drug consumption rooms.”
Successive UK Home Secretaries, including Priti Patel, have refused to consider any calls to treat addiction as a public health issue rather than a criminal one.
Scotland has hit record highs in drug deaths in recent years, with the toll for last year standing at 1339. This month, Scotland’s new Lord Advocate suggested she could consider a proposal for a drugs consumption room in Scotland.
Dorothy Bain told a Holyrood committee the issue of whether to prosecute people involved with such a facility could be “looked at again”.
Peter Krykant, who ran an unofficial DCR in Glasgow for several months, said: “It’s great to have the door opened from the Scottish Conservatives.”
Annemarie Ward, CEO of FAVOR, said: “We are delighted that we have talked the Scottish Tories into this progressive position, on centre ground.”