Campaigners have called for a change in the law to tackle Scotland’s drugs death crisis.
At a vigil in Glasgow to remember those who lost their lives to drugs – on the day it emerged Scotland had recorded a record 1,339 drug deaths in 2020 – organisers pushed for the ‘right to recovery’ for people struggling with addiction.
The latest figures from the National Records of Scotland revealed that Glasgow again had the highest number of drug deaths in the country, with 291 deaths in the city in 2020.
Scotland has the worst drug death rate in Europe, with 21.2 deaths per 1000 of the population — and Glasgow was found to be the worst area for people struggling with addiction.
At the vigil, dozens of people with experience of the crisis urged the Scottish Government to act, as shoppers on Buchanan Street stopped to hear their stories. Frustrated but determined, the campaigners urged politcians to take action.
Annemarie Ward, CEO of the charity Faces and Voices of Recovery (Favor), which organised the memorial, addressed the crowd from the steps of the Royal Concert Hall.
She said: “We’re here to ask for a change in Scotland’s addiction treatment system and we’re here to ask for a change in the law.
“Currently, in the UK, no one has the legal right to addiction treatment and we would like to change that.
“It’s really simple, if nothing changes, nothing changes, next year we don’t want to be standing here again with another rise.
“We’re begging the people of Scotland to get behind us. There is not a family here that hasn’t suffered or is watching someone suffering.
“Our addiction treatment services are failing and we need radical reform.”
The 291 deaths in Glasgow last year were an increase from 279 in 2019 and 280 in 2018.
After the figures were released last year, the Scottish Government appointed a dedicated drugs minister, Angela Constance MSP, and committed funding to tackling the crisis.
Speaking at the vigil, Ms Constance said: “What I want to convey to you all here today is that my focus is entirely on turning fine words into action.
“I know from speaking to many of you, over the months since I’ve taken up this new post that none of us are under any illusions about the scale of the challenge that we all face as a country.
“The ship has been sailing in the wrong direction for 20 years and it has been getting worse not better year after year.
“I want to convey to you my utter commitment. What we need in Scotland today is a culture of change and a culture of compassion.”
The Scottish Conservatives have published a Right to Recovery Bill, which has the backing of seven drug campaign groups, including Favor.
It would enshrine in law that everyone can immediately access the treatment they need.
Glasgow’s Conservative councillor Thomas Kerr, who lost his dad to a drug related illness and whose mum went to rehab, said the Scottish Government hasn’t taken enough action.
“It has been an increase every single year since my dad passed away. Every single year that it comes it’s a gut wrench.
“Angela Constance stands up and says a lot of empty words. She’s been an MSP for years, her government has been in charge for 14 years.
“If she wanted to take some action today, she would have stood up on the steps and said she was backing the right to recovery bill.
“They keep talking about the stuff that they don’t have control over to try and deflect but actually they’ve got a lot of power, and they can get stuff done.”
Scottish Conservatives leader Douglas Ross said: “Year after year after year after year, more people in Scotland are dying as a result of drug misuse and we have to stop that.
“There’s not one silver bullet, there’s not one thing that will solve the problems, but enshrining in law the right to rehab is a way forward.
“We now believe there is support across the political parties to do something about this. The time for talking is over. The time for action is now.”
