Cole-Hamilton: Safe consumption room trial should start urgently

Responding to today’s press release from the Crown Office in which the Lord Advocate discusses the prospect of a trial of a drugs consumption room in Glasgow, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said:  

“I would like to thank the Lord Advocate for her work on this complex issue.

“When Scotland has the worst drugs death rate in Europe, the first priority has to be reducing harm.

“Scottish Liberal Democrats have consistently argued that safe drugs consumption rooms are part of the solution, alongside access to medical care and support.

“International best practice shows that safe consumption is a vital tool to reducing harm. While the pilot discussed here may be more limited than what we would like to see in an ideal world, there can now be no excuses from the Scottish Government for failing to push ahead with a trial swiftly and urgently.

“If that is successful, the government’s hand will be strengthened immeasurably in pressing ahead with similar proposals in other areas such as Dundee, where drug misuse has taken such a deadly and tragic toll.”