In the last decade, drug-related deaths across the UK have surged – nearly doubling across all four nations. The evidence is overwhelming: our current approach is failing. That’s why I secured a Westminster Hall debate, bringing MPs from across the House together to discuss meaningful solutions to this deepening crisis. We can no longer look away. The system is broken, and it’s time we faced that reality head-on.
For decades, UK drug policy has rested on the belief that tougher drug laws and stricter enforcement would reduce harm. On paper, this might sound reasonable: limit access, reduce usage, save lives. But more than 50 years since the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 came into effect the results are clear – and damning. Year after year, preventable deaths rise. Communities suffer. Families grieve. This cannot continue.
The statistics alone should force us to act. But beyond the numbers are real people – our constituents, friends, family – whose lives could be saved by smarter, evidence-based policies. We need to move beyond outdated assumptions and take a long, hard look at what actually works.
That is why I partnered with the Centre for Evidence Based Drug Policy to bring this issue to Parliament. We must explore alternatives – not in theory, but in practice, and we do not need to start from scratch. Numerous Parliamentary enquiries, expert committees, and government-commissioned reviews have already laid out clear, well researched recommendations to reduce drug harms and deaths.
The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), statutorily established by the very law that underpins our current system, exists to provide independent advice on drug policy. Yet, time and again, its findings are ignored. Reports gather dust and promising pilots go unfunded. This isn’t a lack of knowledge – it’s a lack of political will.
We are also not alone in facing this challenge. Portugal, once the country with the worst drug problem in Europe, took bold action in 2001, treating drugs as a health issue rather than a criminal one. Today it sees fewer drug related deaths than most countries in Europe. Meanwhile Scotland now leads Europe in drug mortality. If we refuse to learn from our international counterparts, we risk continuing to top the chart that no one wants to lead.
Whilst the laws that govern drug policy appear to be set in stone, the drug market is ever changing and we face radically different threats than when the Act was first implemented. The rise of synthetic opioids – far more potent and deadly than traditional opioids – has left the public health system scrambling to respond. These drugs are easier to smuggle, harder to detect, and devastating in impact. One need only glance at what is happening in North America to understand the impact they can have. Without urgent intervention we will soon be facing a similar situation.
This requires increased flexibility in the legislation and real collaboration between government departments. Right now criminal organisations are profiting from misery, exploiting the most vulnerable for financial gain. Our job is to protect people, not punish them for being unwell. Meeting them with compassion, care, and without stigma is not just more humane – it’s more effective.
To do this we must rethink how responsibility is shared in government. While the Home Office plays a vital role in the enforcement and security, drug addiction is fundamentally a health issue. The Department of Health and Social Care must take the lead when it comes to treatment and harm reduction, and push for the changes in the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 that would allow evidence based and effective interventions to take place. The solutions are within reach, we just have to implement them. It has become abundantly clear that we cannot police our way out of this public health crisis, and a new approach is long overdue.
