CRAIG Hoy, a Conservative MSP for South Scotland, has urged the Scottish Government to tackle the “heart-breaking” number of lives lost to drugs in Midlothian.
His call comes after the latest annual drug death statistics showed that 1,330 Scots lost their lives to drugs in 2021. This was only marginally down on the record high of 1,339 deaths in 2020 and means Scotland’s drug-deaths rate is five times higher than that of England and Wales, and the highest in Europe.
In Midlothian, there was a 10% increase in drug deaths as 23 people lost their lives to drugs in the county.
Mr Hoy is now calling on Nicola Sturgeon to back Douglas Ross’ Right to Recovery Bill.
He said: “The number of people continuing to lose their lives to drugs in Midlothian is absolutely heart-breaking.
“One death to drugs is one too many, and my thoughts are with those in the county who have lost a loved one to drugs.
“Scotland remains in the grip of a drug-deaths epidemic and Nicola Sturgeon has admitted that she has shamefully took her eye off the ball.
“The Scottish Government now have to accept that their current approach is not succeeding in reducing drug deaths in Midlothian, and they must now back efforts for introducing a Right To Recovery Bill.
“This would enshrine in law a right to treatment for those who need it most and was written in conjunction with frontline experts like FAVOR UK.”
