Suspected drug deaths down but still at ‘high level’, report finds

Drugs deaths in Scotland have fallen in 2024, but “remain at a high level”, new figures have revealed.

New figures published by the Scottish Government showed 833 suspected drugs deaths were recorded over the period January to September 2024 – a reduction of 7% from the previous total.

It comes after 1,172 Scots died as a result of drugs in 2023 – with the figures for that year up by 121 from the previous year’s total.

However, the latest figures, based on data from Police Scotland on suspected drugs deaths, showed that fatalities fell to the lowest rate for two years in the period July to September 2024.

In that quarter, there were 244 suspected drugs deaths recorded – with this 9% less than in April to June and 19% down from July to September 2023.

The report said this was “the lowest number recorded in a single calendar quarter since the quarter ending September 2022” – however, it also made clear that the number of fatalities can “fluctuate from quarter to quarter”, adding that “care should be taken not to interpret movements between individual calendar quarters as indicative of any long-term trend”.

Of the 833 suspected drug deaths over the first nine months of this year, almost three quarters (74%) were men.

As well as the 616 men who died, there were 217 suspected drugs deaths amongst women.

Meanwhile almost two thirds (65%) of those who died were aged between 35 and 54, with this said to be broadly in line with previous quarters.

The Greater Glasgow police division recorded the highest number of suspected drugs deaths, with 186 in this area, followed by 102 in Lanarkshire and 70 in the Edinburgh City area.

Labour health spokesperson Jackie Baillie said the figures showed that “far too many lives are still being tragically cut short by drug misuse in Scotland”.

She added that “every single one of these deaths is a personal tragedy and a political failure” as she accused the Scottish Government of having cut funding for alcohol and drug services in real terms in the budget.

Baillie said: “The SNP must accept that we are still in the grips of a deadly public health emergency and ensure that those struggling with drug addiction can get the treatment and support they need.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said: “Almost 100 people a month are dying in Scotland’s drug deaths emergency. It’s far worse than anywhere else in Europe.

“We need to do everything possible to stop people dying and prevent more families suffering the tragic loss of a loved one through drugs.”

However health secretary Neil Gray said the Scottish Government was providing “record levels of funding” for alcohol and drugs programmes – insisting spending in this area had been protected in the 2025-26 Scottish budget.

Gray stated: “My condolences go to all those who have lost a loved one. We want everyone experiencing harm from drug use to be able access the support they need.”

He added that the Scottish Government’s £250m five year national mission to tackle drug misuse was “taking a wide range of actions, including funding the UK’s first Safer Drug Consumption Facility pilot, working towards the establishment of drug-checking facilities and widening access to life-saving naloxone”.

The health secretary continued: “Record levels of funding for alcohol and drugs programmes were protected in last week’s budget.

“We’ve maintained £112m to local ADPs (Alcohol and Drugs Partnerships) for treatment and support services and we’ll continue to invest in residential rehabilitation – with more than £10 million committed to increasing capacity and funded placements.”

He also said the the Scottish Government would continue to provide the Corra Foundation with £13m a year – with Gray noting that the charity “has now distributed funding to more than 300 grassroots organisations and projects, helping to support more than 33,000 people”.