Scotland’s drug deaths rise to new record https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-55184961
For the sixth year running, Scotland has seen a record total of drug deaths. We are once again the worst in Europe.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise. While the UK and Scottish governments organised competing summits to showcase their vision of how to tackle the problem, frontline workers warned that the death rate was accelerating.
This year, the mountain of toxicology reports into drug deaths needed £300,000 of extra funding to be cleared and, still, the figures were five months late.
Much of the focus of this issue has been on the Misuse of Drugs Act, which is reserved to Westminster.
The Scottish government argues that it needs more control over the law to trial initiatives such as safer injecting facilities; the UK government argues the opposite, and that instead there needs to be more investment in rehab beds.
Those in the sector say these arguments only serve to simplify an issue that is so intractable, so huge.
Already identified as issues to tackle are punitive regimes that saw users kicked off methadone prescriptions for missing appointments. Those hoping for methadone were, in some cases, waiting up to five weeks for a prescription.
While the death toll climbed, funding to frontline services was cut by the Scottish government. In 2016, treatment was only reaching 40% of those who needed it.
Not all is that great in scotland imo, it appears. Mr salmond was awarded 500k and those snp members who made the claims not upheld in a court of law are still recieving funds from the goverment funded ngo setup to support them.. and i doubt if you did leave the uk, the funding that you do get from the huge amount of uk taxpayers compared to those in scotland per capita would stack up, especally if fossil fuels tank in the years to come. So personally i think scotland has it good, so good and they got westminster to always blame as well..
That’s the bigger issue and one i have seen locally in england my town has missed out on £25m of funds why because labour don’t want the conservative mp to get the credit for it. So they voted down the plans and no money that is much need will becoming ourway.
You know the levelling up money and that’s the biggest issue all this my party must come first bs over the actual people’s needs as they cannot look bad and approve a scheme what the others proposed by the mp that was voted in by the people. When the next vote happens for the council they will be next out the door.
lets not even talk about the major apart from she set up a company with £1 to get a council funded contract to build affordable homes to sell for a profit. They all corrupt and have some agenda thats, really not for the people but to extort them..
Imo the snp are the same as all the rest and after living in many london boroughs and a few councils around the uk, i know which i prefer to live in if i have a choice, conservative run ones.. but i am not really a conservative. I’m a realist.. and what they all say and offer is not what you get.. You need to look into stuff yourself. Scotland deffo has more powers than it did before so that is a good thing as is local councils imo.
I am all for scotland being independant, but when the people vote then you must accept that vote and move on and when you should vote on it again is when time has passed and say like with brexit it has been implemented and given a chance to see what’s what..Then maybe we can vote on the matter again.
I am almost 50 and i have had one vote in my life on eu membership. But like if you do get indyref2 and the people vote to remain again what then? but imo that what the snp want.
Imo they a radical nationalist party and far something or other and for themselves. Luckily they do not stand in england. so i don’t have to vote for or against/ them and personally i would not as i would not vote for the bnp or edp etc…
But it’s ok for that to go on in scotland but not england as we’d be called bigots and racists just like those that voted for brexit was called as nazi’s well..
So this is one of the reasons i want scotland to sort it out and leave or stay and then get on with the issues that really matter to us all in the uk not just one part.. Just like with brexit now it’s done we can move on.