In the so-called war on drugs, the criminalisation of addicts was always a failed approach.
The international evidence is that far more can be done to save lives and to turn the situation around by medical intervention than by the justice system alone.
That is why the Daily Record has campaigned for safe consumption facilities and decriminalisation for small amounts in a nation that is facing a public health crisis in terms of drugs deaths.
The Scottish Government and medical and legal experts are of the same view but the power to alter the law lies with the UK Home Office.
Despite one of the most extensive Parliamentary investigations into drugs deaths, after a UK-wide summit on the issue and after hearing the evidence and lived experience of drug addicts, their families and the professionals who support and police them, the UK Government still says no.
The decision by the Home Office to reject the Scottish Affairs committee’s comprehensive report recommending a pilot facility in Glasgow is as bewildering as it is daft.
“Just say no” is an out-dated and ill-advised slogan against drug abuse. In the 21st century, more than a law and order response is needed.
This shameful Tory Government is either not interested or not prepared to act. Meanwhile, the death toll continues to rise.
999 emergency
Given the stresses they face, it is no surprise Scotland’s most senior police officers are reporting their mental health is taking a battering.
The literal life and death decisions that senior police staff have to take on a daily basis would cause burnout in the most hardened and experienced personnel.
As well as acknowledging the issue, difficult enough to do in the “hard” culture of frontline service, more must be done to help and support the people at the sharp end of protecting the public.
There are counselling and trauma support services available but sharing the burden by increasing the number of trained personnel must also be considered.
Everyday hero
David Young’s move from his family home into his greenhouse to keep them safe and to allow him to carry on as a care worker is humbling.
We suspect he is not alone in his actions to go above and beyond to carry on providing a valuable public service.
Those who make sacrifices on the frontline of the fight against coronavirus every day are quite simply heroic.
