SNP WHITE FLAG ON DRUG ABUSE
Anger as users caught with cocaine and heroin can now be let off with ‘soft-touch’ on-the-spot warning instead of facing prosecution
THE SNP is ‘waving the white flag’ in the war on drugs by allowing people caught with class A substances to escape without punishment.
Ministers were condemned for forcing through decriminalisation ‘by the back door’ after unveiling the biggest change of policing drugs ever announced by the Scottish Government.
Officers will be advised to issue a ‘recorded police warning’ to those found in possession of any drugs, including class A substances such as heroin and cocaine.
It means that more than 10,000 people a year who are charged with possession will now be issued with a formal warning rather than a fine or prosecution.
It comes after drug deaths soared to a record 1,339 in Scotland last year.
The change was announced in a statement to MSPs by new Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain, QC, and will not even go
to a vote in parliament because she has the power to update guidelines issued to police.
The move was welcomed by ministers but opposition leaders reacted angrily to the imposition of the ‘dangerous’ decision without proper parliamentary scrutiny.
Scottish Tory justice spokesman Jamie Greene said: ‘The Scottish parliament must have a say with a full debate and vote on this topic, not just a quick Q&A session. We need to fully scrutinise the gravity of a decision of such importance and magnitude.
‘Scotland’s drug death crisis is our national shame but the way to tackle it is to improve access to treatment and rehabilitation, not to dilute how seriously we treat possession of deadly drugs like heroin, crystal meth and crack cocaine.
‘The answer to our drugs crisis is more access to treatment, not this de-facto decriminalisation by the back door of drugs that are the scourge of our streets and society. There is a fine line between drug possession and drug dealing.
‘This dangerous decision will benefit drug dealers by making it more difficult to stop the supply.’
Mr Greene added: ‘Police officers will be put in an impossible situation. Nothing that has been said will stop drug deaths and nothing that has been said will guarantee access to treatment. Instead of fighting the scourge of drugs, the SNP Government is waving the white flag.’
The move was announced by Miss Bain in her first appearance in the Holyrood chamber since being appointed Lord Advocate in June this year. It followed a review ordered by the previous Lord Advocate James Wolffe, QC.
But Tom Buchan, a former chief superintendent with now-defunct Strathclyde Police, said: ‘This is a surrender – the white flag has gone up.
‘It will have no benefits at all and it comes in the middle of a huge drugs emergency. It’s more soft-touch nonsense.
‘I feel sorry for the officers who will have to implement this. They don’t want to be turning a blind eye to crime. I don’t know who they have consulted on this, if anyone, but it is basically just throwing in the towel.’
Recorded police warnings were introduced by the SNP Scottish Government for ‘low-level offences’ in 2016.
Miss Bain said: ‘As Lord Advocate, I issue guidelines to the police in relation to the operation of this scheme including which offences may be considered for a recorded police warning.
‘These guidelines are set by me, acting independently of any other person. They extend beyond drug possession offences and are therefore properly confidential.
‘However, I can confirm that the guidelines previously permitted the police to issue recorded police warnings for possession of class B and class C drugs.
‘At the time of the debate, the guidelines were already under review. The review examined drug possession-only case outcomes.
‘I have considered the review and I have decided that an extension of the recorded police warning guidelines to include possession offences for class A drugs is appropriate.
‘Police officers may therefore choose to issue a recorded police warning for simple possession offences for all classes of drugs.’
The Lord Advocate said that warnings will only be issued to people caught in possession of drugs and not those who supply them, and she insisted it was not decriminalisation because recorded police warnings are an ‘enforcement of the law’.
But critics highlighted that Police Scotland’s own guidance says recorded police warnings can have ‘a positive impact on individuals by not criminalising them’.
Miss Bain insisted that officers still have the ability to report cases to the procurator fiscal if they think that is appropriate.
The total number of charges for drug possession only in Scotland has soared from 7,459 in 2018-19 to 10,200 in 2020-21. Last year, one in ten cases proceeded to court, down from one in three in 2017-18.
Of the cases reported to prosecutors, the vast majority result in a financial penalty. The number of cases diverted to social work or other agencies has also soared in recent years, from 57 in 2017-18 to 501 in 2019-20 and 1,000 last year.
Miss Bain said: ‘The range of options available to police, prosecutors and courts reflects the fact that in Scotland there is no one size fits all response to an individual found in possession of a controlled substance or an individual dependent on drugs.
‘The most appropriate response, the smartest response, in any drugs case, must be tailored to the facts and circumstances of both the alleged offence and the offender. Scotland’s police and prosecutors are using the powers
available to them to both uphold the law and help tackle the drugdeath emergency.’
Drugs Policy Minister Angela Constance said: ‘I welcome the announcement today. The Lord Advocate is clear that recorded police warnings do not represent decriminalisation of an offence. They represent a proportionate and timely enforcement of the law, but in a manner which avoids the stigmatising impact of a criminal conviction on individuals who need support, not condemnation.’