Professor Angela O'Hagan

The human rights watchdog says the continued scale of drug deaths in Scotland remains a serious human rights concern and is calling for a human rights based approach to tackling the crisis.

Professor Angela O’Hagan, chair of the Scottish Human Rights Commission, said: “Drug deaths are a human rights issue. Updated statistics show an 11 per cent rise in deaths related to illicit drugs. This is devastating for the people affected, their families and communities. Death rates are persistently high in Scotland, despite policy commitments to reverse this situation.

“The Scottish Human Rights Commission has been clear that drug deaths are unacceptable and avoidable. While this is a persistent and complex issue, it is not inevitable.

“The Scottish government has recognised the severity of the issue and committed to take further action. Any action must address the root causes as well as the symptoms of drug deaths.

“There is a clear link between deprivation and drug deaths. The government should take a human rights based approach to designing and evaluating its plan to tackle this issue.

“We have written to the first minister to ask for an update on how the government is making this happen.”