Chamber and committees

Following on from Douglas Lumsden’s question, I have a supplementary on the timescale for the A96 work. About 20 years ago, Moray Council voted against the Elgin bypass. Would that have had an impact on the timescales now?

My question is about access. Many folk during and after Covid found or rediscovered our outdoor spaces and our gorgeous countryside. With that in mind, cabinet secretary, is the current outdoor access code sufficiently detailed and directive to cope with a large increase in access levels? What needs to be done to manage the challenges that increased visitor numbers have created, especially around popular spots?

The challenge is also to get the routes in. We have the under-22s provision, but if they cannot get to places for work or whatever, that defeats the purpose a little bit. However, that is for another day.

It includes mine, too, so I will contact you outwith the committee in regard to that, if you do not mind.

You have already touched on the subject of my final question. Countries including Austria and Germany have recently introduced national or regional transport tickets that provide access to almost all public transport across their country for a low monthly cost. Has the Scottish Government given any consideration to introducing that?

Thank you. That’s me, convener.

As someone who visits the Highlands regularly, I absolutely agree. Education is the key, but the sad fact is that a small number of folk will not abide by the rules and will behave irresponsibly when they are out and about. Are the current byelaws appropriate and proportionate for managing that behaviour, or is there some other solution?

Oh, I do.

What engagement have Transport Scotland officials had with their UK counterparts to hear about and learn lessons from the £2 bus fare cap that was introduced in January?

I wish the minister and Gillian Mackay a speedy recovery and thank them for leaving their sick beds to take part in the debate.

I have said it before in this chamber, and I will say it again: every drug death is a tragedy. Every statistic represents not just a person but grieving friends, families and communities. The high levels of drug deaths that we face year on year in the UK and Scotland show that the current approach is just not working, so I and many others welcome the evidence-based proposals for change and reform.

If we are to address the root cause of the drug deaths tragedy, we need to tackle stigma and dehumanisation. The stigmatisation of drug misuse means that we often dehumanise the folks involved, and we simply cannot allow that if we are to see serious, positive change. They are real folks with real friends and families, and they are among my constituents, your constituents, Presiding Officer, and all of our constituents. If we want to create a society where drug misuse is treated as a health issue and not a criminal matter, we must actively unlearn dehumanisation and remove it from our work, as we know that it has tragic consequences. We must create a supportive environment, where users can reach out for help and know that they will receive it without judgment or discrimination, and where we work to identify and remove social, cultural and economic barriers to help.

We are taking a significant step on that journey through approaching the problem as a public health emergency. Ultimately, substance dependency is a health condition and, when it takes root in our communities, it should be dealt with first and foremost as an avoidable public health emergency, not just as a regrettable uptick in criminal activity. I was heartened to see that principle at the heart of the Scottish Government’s motion, and it is hugely reassuring to see it right there in the title of the policy paper itself: “A Caring, Compassionate and Human Rights Informed Drug Policy for Scotland”. The more we embed compassion into our approach to the emergency and the more awareness we spread of the human right to a happy, healthy life, the more folk with a dependency on drugs will be able to seek the caring and often life-saving support to which they are entitled.

Of course, it is not just enough to be kind and hope for the best, which is why the policy paper contains bold ideas, as well as building on the policies and investment that are already in place. The £250-million national mission on drugs must continue to gain momentum, ensuring that the right treatment is reaching the right people. Residential rehabilitation must be accessible, life-saving medical technology standards must be delivered, and the effort to tackle interconnected issues of social justice and inequality must continue.

Those who live in the most deprived areas of Scotland are almost 16 times more likely to die from drug misuse, so I welcome, and whole-heartedly applaud, the First Minister’s laser focus on eradicating poverty in the year ahead. More is needed, however, and the Scottish Government’s policy shows a promising route forward.

The policy proposal that has captured the most headlines argues for the decriminalisation of possession for personal supply. It is seen as radical, but less radical than it may once have been viewed. We have evidence of the effectiveness of such policies not just in projections and theories, but in reality. For proof, we need only look to Portugal, which introduced a similar policy in 2001—a policy that remains in place to this day. Like us today, those in Portugal recognised that the fight had to be against the health problem, not the patients.

The Scottish Government’s paper states its support for safer drug consumption rooms, noting that as of 2022, 16 countries are successfully operating legal drug consumption rooms. The recent announcement by the Lord Advocate will have been welcome news to many who are keen to see progress in that regard.

As long as care, compassion and human rights are at the core of the Scottish Government’s approach, I have hope that we can turn the tide, saving lives and improving folks’ wellbeing. It is harder to maintain that hope, however, when I look at the UK Government’s approach. While we in Scotland turn to care, compassion and human rights, the Home Office claims to be swift, certain and tough—words used in the title of a UK Government paper just last year. Such language is entirely outdated, dehumanising and stigmatising, and it is a hangover from the impossible war on drugs—a war that cannot be won, and which we cannot keep fighting.

The reserved Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 is now more than 50 years old. It is in urgent need of reform, and it is not just here in the Scottish Parliament that that is recognised. Experts on the Scottish Drug Deaths Taskforce have come to the same conclusion, as have Westminster’s Scottish Affairs Committee and Health and Social Care Committee. Only by amending the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 or devolving the powers to implement Scotland’s drugs policy can we reach the end goal: saving lives, preventing harm and removing needless stigma.

The changes that are outlined in the Scottish Government’s proposals, while they are ambitious and radical, are necessary. As has been said many times on all sides of, and outwith, the chamber, we are facing an emergency. In the face of crisis, we should use every lever at our disposal—in this case, some of those levers currently lie with the UK Government. My hope is that the talks ahead are constructive and positive, and that care and compassion guide our national mission to end drug deaths for good.