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Drugs forum would back illegal drug injecting rooms

This news post is about 4 years old
 

Experts in Scotland must work together to tackle the drugs crisis, however an illegal drugs consumption facility should not be closed by police

A leading drug charity has said it will back an illegal injecting room - if Westminster continues to block such moves.

The Scottish Drugs Forum (SDF) said this was essential if Scotland is to make progress in tackling rates of drug related deaths, which are the highest in the European Union.

Two key drug summits were held in Glasgow last week, with the issue of safe consumption rooms at the top of the agenda.

Experts in Scotland have argued that creating safe spaces for adults to inject - or drug consumption rooms (DCRs) - would help protect those addicted to drugs, however the UK government doubled down on its stance that it would not allow consumption rooms.

This has prompted calls for an illegal facility to be created in Scotland, with a crowdfunding drive already launched to introduce the mobile facility.

The SDF has called for groups to work together to ensure facilities are created, but said it would back an unregistered mobile facility if an official pilot is blocked.

A statement said: “It is a sad reflection of the failure of the state due to government inaction and a lack of will from legal authorities, if these services have to be developed by concerned private citizens.

“However, international precedents from Canada and elsewhere show that these types of initiatives can be mainstreamed and develop into state-supported services. In Scotland, this possibility was first raised by people in recovery in conversation with professionals from Canada invited to Scotland by SDF in August 2018.

“SDF would want these services to be developed within the law and by the state and appeals now, again, for the Scottish Government, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and UK Home Office to work to ensure that a pilot facility, at least, is provided in Scotland.”

The forum said that if an official facility was blocked it would call for: the Crown to decide that the prosecution of the people developing and delivering this service would not be in the public interest and would result in further adverse public health outcomes; that policing of such a service would have a single aim – the promotion of public health and public safety; and that, so far as they are able, workers support those organising this facility to ensure it is fully equipped to deliver an effective and high quality service.

With drug laws reserved to Westminster, the Home Office has repeatedly blocked Scottish Government and council officials from pursuing the project.

The summit attended by Home Office Minister Kit Malthouse, at Glasgow’s SEC on Thursday, was the second in two days, following a meeting on the same topic, at the same venue, hosted by Scottish ministers the day before.

Malthouse said: “There are two issues with DCRs – first we cannot pretend they’re not legally very difficult.

“They involve the commission of several types of crime and the tolerance therefore of those crimes and that presents us with a legal and legislative difficulty.

“Secondly, the evidence around the world is mixed – most of the studies are broadly to areas where they’ve been used and even the most successful ones affect quite small numbers of people.”

Scottish Government public health minister Joe FitzPatrick said: “The UK government has made it clear at their summit that they are not willing to consider the bold, innovative approaches to this problem that I feel are needed.

“However, that doesn’t mean we will stop fighting for what we believe is right and this extra investment will help us in our efforts to save lives.”

 

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