Scottish drug deaths: what's gone wrong?

The latest figures show an increase in drug misuse deaths in Scotland

A syringe and cigarette lighter
The first safe consumption room is set to open in Glasgow later this year
(Image credit: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Scotland's drug deaths remain the highest in Europe despite repeated government pledges to tackle the issue, new figures have shown. Last year there was a 12% rise in the number of drug misuse-related deaths, which "dashes hopes" that a decrease the previous year meant "the problem was easing", said Iain Macwhirter in The Spectator.

According to the figures published by the National Records of Scotland (NRS), deaths rose to 1,172 in 2023, a rate "2.7 times the figure in England and Northern Ireland" and twice that of Wales, said The Telegraph.

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Richard Windsor is a freelance writer for The Week Digital. He began his journalism career writing about politics and sport while studying at the University of Southampton. He then worked across various football publications before specialising in cycling for almost nine years, covering major races including the Tour de France and interviewing some of the sport’s top riders. He led Cycling Weekly’s digital platforms as editor for seven of those years, helping to transform the publication into the UK’s largest cycling website. He now works as a freelance writer, editor and consultant.