The Scottish Government today welcomed new statistics that show illicit drug use in Scotland is continuing to decrease.
Figures published today show that the number of adults who reported that they had used any illicit drug in the last year in 2010/11 is 6.6 per cent – a fall compared to 7.2 per cent in 2009/10 and 7.6 per cent in 2008/09.
The figures, published in the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey 2010/11 Drug Use report, also reveal that the number of adults who reported using drugs in the last month has fallen to 3.5 per cent in 2010/11, compared with 4.2 per cent in 2009/10 and 4.4 per cent in 2008/09.
Roseanna Cunningham says these figures show the Scottish Government are “moving in the right direction”
Minister for Community Safety and Legal Affairs Roseanna Cunningham said:
“This Government is working hard to tackle Scotland’s legacy of drugs misuse and these figures show that we are firmly moving in the right direction.
“These statistics show us that over the last three years there has been a decrease in self-reported illicit drug use in Scotland, and also back up figures last year that showed fewer of our young people are taking drugs.
“I believe a better general understanding of the risks associated with taking drugs is contributing to the fall. Since 2007/08 we have directly invested £5.43 million in our ambitious substance misuse prevention programme, supporting activities including Know the Score and Choices for Life, the interactive alcohol, drugs and tobacco education programme, which over 200,000 schoolchildren have engaged with since 2007/08.
“Another important factor is the concerted efforts of law enforcement agencies across Scotland to disrupt the supply of drugs into our communities. However, enforcement alone will not tackle the demand for illicit drugs.
“Our national drugs strategy, The Road to Recovery, has been reinforced with investing record funding for drug treatment – an increase of over 20 per cent since 2006/07 – to ensure help is there for people who want it. As our drug and alcohol treatment waiting times figures also published today show, people are continuing to enter treatment, and are getting the help they need to support their recovery more quickly.”
