Drug Death Taskforce final report branded a 'farce' that offers 'little change as deaths continue'

The taskforce published its report today with 10 recommendations on care and justice in a bid to reduce the country's shocking drug deaths toll.

It called for a new system of dealing with the drug death crisis as the punishment approach has 'not worked'.

READ MORE: Drug Death Task Force final report calls for new approach

Campaigners, however, said the report offers little in the way of actual change.

Annemarie Ward, chief executive of Favor (Faces and Voices of Recovery), said: “It’s a farce in my opinion. I have seen these strategies come and go and what we are getting right now is the same rehashing of the old ideas that got us into this mess.

 “I have seen millions of pounds pouring into the field but it’s not going towards treatment.

 “It’s going towards the same quangos and favoured bodies, who will churn out research about how we should reduce stigma and how we should talk about drug issues. And it will do nothing to cut drug deaths.”

The task force recommends the UK Government consider drug consumption facilities, wants a most extensive Naloxone network in the UK and licensed drug checking services.

READ MORE: Elitist approach to drugs policy must end if we want results

It also states: “Wherever an individual lives in Scotland, they should be able to access crisis and stabilisation, detoxification and rehabilitation services at the point of need.”

Favor is calling for greater investment in a full range of treatment services and has written a Right To Recovery Bill to be presented to Holyrood by the Conservatives.

Ms Ward said: “What we need is to get more people into treatment and keep them there until they are well.

“That might mean rehab or it might mean harm reduction but we need to respect the rights of patients with alcohol or other drug issues and we need far more responsibility and accountability to fall on those who are failing year after year.”

She called for a change in personnel who are tasked with changing culture and producing change.

Ms Ward added: “We need to be getting out into the recovery field, genuinely involving many people who have recovered from addiction and who know how they got better and who can guide the current system away from repeated and catastrophic failure.

“There are 200,000 people in Scotland who might fit into that category, yet we always turn to a tiny, narrow group who are employed with the same agencies who have been in place through successive disastrous drugs strategies.”

The taskforce report argues "major cultural changes are needed".

It states: "Stigma kills people. We are therefore calling for an end to stigma, discrimination and punishment creating a new system based on care, compassion and human rights."

Ms Ward, however, said: “Our Right to Recovery Bill would deliver more than the entirety of this latest strategy.

"It would give access to treatment, choices of treatment and genuine chances of recovery, always focusing on a long-term view and investment in helping people get better.

“The biggest stigma we have right now is how we are seen as just  ‘junkies’ and ‘alkies’ who are allowed to die and no-one ever gets held to account for failing to help us for two reasons - one, we come from our poorest communities, and two, we don’t vote so the politicians can get away with their never-ending game of political football.”