Cole-Hamilton calls for action and leadership on drugs deaths

Responding to the evaluation of the Scottish Government's national mission on drugs death published today, which found that only 35% of the ADP coordinators who were surveyed agreed that there was “effective national leadership on the National Mission” by the Scottish Government and 72% of respondents felt the total amount of funding allocated to Alcohol and Drug Partnerships to support the delivery of the mission was “too little”, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

"Scotland has been an appalling outlier on drugs deaths for many years now.

"SNP cabinet ministers have admitted that they deprioritised the issue to focus on independence, while Nicola Sturgeon cut the budget for drug and alcohol services. The result has been thousands of lives lost and families torn apart.

"These figures suggest that on both leadership and tangible support they are still falling short.

"In the recent budget my party secured additional support for mothers and their babies born addicted to drugs but there is still much more to do.

"Alongside support for alcohol and drug partnerships, Liberal Democrats want to see the Scottish Government rolling out a nationwide network of safe consumption rooms, new drug checking facilities and giving people who are misusing drugs treatment instead of prison.”