More needed to tackle drug misuse
Christmas and New Year are, of course, occasions where we like to treat ourselves, have some nice food and a few drinks.
Whilst for most these will have been safe and happy celebrations, unfortunately this is also the time of year where we tend to see a spike in alcohol and drug related incidents which our emergency services will have had to deal with.
There can be no denying that Scotland continues to have a very troubled relationship with both alcohol and drugs.
It is an uncomfortable reality, and one that we must not shirk from, in that deaths from drugs misuse across the UK is rising, whilst alcohol-related deaths are higher now than they were in the mid-1990s.
However, it is a problem which the Scottish Government are committed to tackling.
This year, they are set to unveil a new alcohol strategy. In spring we will be announcing a combined alcohol and drugs treatment action plan, and in May, the minimum pricing policy will come into force.
During a statement to parliament in November on the forthcoming alcohol and drugs action plan, I raised the issue of so-called drug consumption rooms with the public health minister.
Drug consumption rooms, otherwise known as safer consumption facilities, are places where illicit drugs can be used under the supervision of trained staff.
Although a controversial subject, it is an initiative that I support – as I fully believe it could help save lives. Officiallysanctioned Drug Consumption Rooms have been in existence for over 30 years, and they currently exist in eight European countries, as well as in Canada and Australia.
Evidence demonstrates that these facilities reduce street injection; they decrease the number of syringes discarded on streets; the risk of needle sharing is minimised; drug-related deaths are reduced; whilst they also increase the uptake in drug treatment.
Ultimately, injecting in a safe environment gives the drug user the opportunity of life- saving interventions should they overdose, whilst they are also able to receive help from addiction services, social care staff, and other health care professionals.
These are opportunities which may not be readily available to those with chaotic lives, or those who do not readily engage with such services. As it stands the risk to the user and the public remains too high so a change in thinking is required.
For the user, they often take drugs in alleys, hidden under bridges, or out of sight – so if they were to overdose there is no immediate help available. For the public, there remains a risk of coming across discarded needles, syringes, and injecting equipment.
Safe injecting rooms are an obvious solution to these problems. Drug consumption rooms have become more prominent and widely debated over the last year following a concerted effort to establish one in Glasgow.
For a safer consumption facility to be granted legal permission to operate, it would require an exemption from the Misuse of Drugs Act by the UK Government, however they have refused to grant this exception.
If the UK Government are unwilling to grant the exemption, then they must commit to devolving the powers to our parliament.
The steps taken thus far to tackle drug-related deaths sadly does not seem to be working for everyone. Scotland’s relationship with drugs must be changed, and radical solutions, like drug consumption rooms, must be considered.
Scotland’s relationship with drugs must be changed