How is the SNP improving drug addiction services?
The number of deaths caused by drug misuse fell by 13% to 1,017 last year – the lowest level registered since 2017.
According to statistics published by National Records of Scotland on 2 September 2025, there were 155 fewer deaths in 2024 compared to the previous year.
The statistics showed that people in the most deprived areas were 12 times more likely to die from drugs as those in least deprived areas. This is a drop from 15 times more likely in 2023.
It is welcome that the number of deaths at the lowest level since 2017, but there is still work to be done and the Scottish Government will continue to do everything it can to save and improve lives.
That is why the SNP is providing record levels of funding for drugs and alcohol programmes and widening access to treatment, residential rehabilitation and life-saving naloxone.
The spread of grassroots support, enhanced by Scottish Government funding of more than 300 organisations and projects, has also made a difference on the ground.
However, the Scottish Government will always want to do more and will continue to work hard to adapt to new patterns of consumption and demand to direct support where it is most needed.
The SNP is working hard within its powers to reduce drug deaths – our public health approach is simply at odds with the Westminster legislation we have to operate within.
The Westminster war on drugs has been an abject failure. Instead of solving problems, it has made them worse by stigmatising those who use drugs and creating barriers to tackling substance addiction.
Legislative powers are not currently devolved to Scotland, but there are different routes to delivering the changes the Scottish Government call for.
These policies could be implemented by the Scottish Government through the devolution of further, specific powers to Holyrood including the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.
As the Scottish Government the SNP has taken action through its £250 million National Mission on Drugs.
The includes opening a Safer Drug Consumption Facility pilot, working towards the opening of drug-checking facilities, and widening access to life-saving naloxone.
The SNP Scottish Government continue to improve access to residential rehab, where it is on track to meet its target for additional placements and drive the rollout of MAT standards to make treatment and support available more quickly.
Additional National Mission funding, and support has created momentum in local areas to put services in place to save lives. The Scottish Government has now backed more than 300 grassroots projects.
Funding for alcohol and drugs in the 2025/26 Scottish Budget is over £150 million.
This includes maintaining £112m funding for ADPs and supporting a wide range of activity – including residential rehabilitation, and £2.3m available for the Thistle Centre Safer Drug Consumption Facility.
Investment in alcohol and drug services has doubled since 2014/15 to £156 million in 2024/25.
Scotland’s pilot safer drug consumption facility, The Thistle, started supporting service users this year.
This facility – the first of its kind in the UK, backed by £2.3m of Scottish Government funding – is key to working towards reducing the levels of drug deaths across Scotland.
Since 2021 there has been a rise of 21% in residential rehabilitation bed capacity in Scotland.
A Scottish Government report published on 26 November 2024 showed that there has been a rise in residential rehabilitation capacity from an estimated 425 beds in 2021 to a maximum of 513 in 2024.
This is above the Scottish Government’s plan of 1,000 people per year receiving public funding for their residential rehab placement in 2022/23.
Beyond this, in August 2024 the Scottish Government announced a further £2million of funding via the to enable Alcohol and Drug partnerships to support even more people to access rehab.