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LONDON: The Scottish government has proposed decriminalizing the possession of all medicines for personal use to tackle one of the highest rates of overdose deaths in Europe.
The proposal was almost immediately blocked by the UK’s Conservative government in London, which said it had “no plans” to relax drug laws.
The semi-autonomous Edinburgh government, led by the pro-independence Scottish National Party, said on Friday that removing criminal penalties for drug possession would “allow safe, evidence-based services to minimize harm”.
Scotland’s death rate from drug overdoses is three times that of the UK as a whole and the highest in Western Europe. Last year, there were nearly 1,100 drug-related deaths in Scotland, a population of 5.5 million, according to government figures.
“The war on drugs has failed,” said Elena, the Scottish Drugs Minister Whitham She said at a press conference alongside former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and former Swiss President Ruth Dreyfus, both advocates of drug law reform.
“Our current drug law does not prevent people from taking drugs, it does not prevent people from experiencing harm associated with that, and most importantly, it does not prevent people from dying,” Witham said.
The Scottish government said decriminalization would free “individuals from the fear of accessing treatment and support, reduce drug-related harm and, ultimately, improve lives”. She cited the example of Portugal, which abandoned criminal penalties for drug possession more than two decades ago and focused on treatment.
Witham said the government also wanted to change the law so it could set up supervised rooms for drug consumption and would consider introducing a drug supply system.
Without radical change, she said, the crisis will only get worse. She said Scotland “faces a stormy crater in terms of new and new synthetic opioids and benzodiazepines coming to our shores”.
“If we weren’t prepared for this getting here, with 21st century drug laws, I’m terrified of what that could look like,” she said.
But Russell Findlay, justice spokesman for the Scottish Conservative Party, said that “legalizing heroin, crack and other class A drugs” would not solve the problem of drug deaths in Scotland.
Scotland already allows people caught taking illegal drugs to be warned by the police rather than prosecuted, but decriminalization of drugs will require support from the UK government.
Max BlaineSpokesman for the Prime Minister Rishi SunakHe said that wouldn’t happen.
“There are no plans to change our hardline stance on drugs,” he said.
The Scottish government has often taken more liberal positions on social issues than the Conservative administration in London. Last year, Sunak’s government blocked a law passed by the Scottish Parliament that would make it easier for people to officially change sex.
The ruling Scottish National Party uses such controversies to bolster its argument that Scotland would be better off leaving the UK and becoming an independent country.
The proposal was almost immediately blocked by the UK’s Conservative government in London, which said it had “no plans” to relax drug laws.
The semi-autonomous Edinburgh government, led by the pro-independence Scottish National Party, said on Friday that removing criminal penalties for drug possession would “allow safe, evidence-based services to minimize harm”.
Scotland’s death rate from drug overdoses is three times that of the UK as a whole and the highest in Western Europe. Last year, there were nearly 1,100 drug-related deaths in Scotland, a population of 5.5 million, according to government figures.
“The war on drugs has failed,” said Elena, the Scottish Drugs Minister Whitham She said at a press conference alongside former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and former Swiss President Ruth Dreyfus, both advocates of drug law reform.
“Our current drug law does not prevent people from taking drugs, it does not prevent people from experiencing harm associated with that, and most importantly, it does not prevent people from dying,” Witham said.
The Scottish government said decriminalization would free “individuals from the fear of accessing treatment and support, reduce drug-related harm and, ultimately, improve lives”. She cited the example of Portugal, which abandoned criminal penalties for drug possession more than two decades ago and focused on treatment.
Witham said the government also wanted to change the law so it could set up supervised rooms for drug consumption and would consider introducing a drug supply system.
Without radical change, she said, the crisis will only get worse. She said Scotland “faces a stormy crater in terms of new and new synthetic opioids and benzodiazepines coming to our shores”.
“If we weren’t prepared for this getting here, with 21st century drug laws, I’m terrified of what that could look like,” she said.
But Russell Findlay, justice spokesman for the Scottish Conservative Party, said that “legalizing heroin, crack and other class A drugs” would not solve the problem of drug deaths in Scotland.
Scotland already allows people caught taking illegal drugs to be warned by the police rather than prosecuted, but decriminalization of drugs will require support from the UK government.
Max BlaineSpokesman for the Prime Minister Rishi SunakHe said that wouldn’t happen.
“There are no plans to change our hardline stance on drugs,” he said.
The Scottish government has often taken more liberal positions on social issues than the Conservative administration in London. Last year, Sunak’s government blocked a law passed by the Scottish Parliament that would make it easier for people to officially change sex.
The ruling Scottish National Party uses such controversies to bolster its argument that Scotland would be better off leaving the UK and becoming an independent country.
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