5. To ask the First Minister what steps the Scottish Government is taking to tackle the rise in the number of drug-related acute hospital stays. (S5F-00318)

While drug taking among the general population is falling, and the number of young people taking drugs is at the lowest level in a decade, we remain determined to tackle problem drug use. With our partners, and supported by an investment of more than £600 million since 2008, we are working to reduce the harm caused by drug and alcohol use.

The rise in the number of hospital stays is the result of an ageing cohort of drug users. The reality is that, as drug users get older, they become more vulnerable, which means that they have a greater need for the support and care of the national health service. We will continue to work with sub-sector groups to identify and understand the current and particular needs of those individuals.

The First Minister will be aware from the recently published “Drug-Related Hospital Statistics Scotland” report that general acute admissions increased by almost 500 in the last financial year. The same report showed that around half of those patients lived in the 20 per cent most deprived areas of Scotland. Will the First Minister accept that the Scottish Government needs to do much more to reduce serious drug misuse in our most deprived areas?

The First Minister:

Of course I will. While we still have a problem of drug use, there will always be more that the Government needs to do. However, I would genuinely point the member to some of the trends that I highlighted in my opening answer. The number of young people taking drugs is at the lowest level in a decade. That would suggest that the initiatives that we are taking are having some success.

Coupled with that, it is right to say that we are seeing an increasing trend of hospital admissions, but that is related to the ageing cohort of drug users. As people become older, having spent their life, or a substantial part of it, taking drugs, they increasingly need hospital treatment. That is the explanation behind that trend.

We should not be complacent about drug use in any community, but particularly not in our most deprived communities. We must continue to do everything possible to combat it.

Does the First Minister agree that drug-related acute hospital stays are often related to illegal drug use? Can she confirm that drug-related crime has fallen dramatically since the Scottish National Party came to office, with a fall of 45.7 per cent in North Ayrshire alone, from 1,235 cases a decade ago to 671 last year?

The First Minister:

I certainly welcome and point to the recently published recorded crime figures, which highlight the reduction in drug offences in North Ayrshire and reflect other positive trends in that area. North Ayrshire routinely exceeds the national performance standard that expects 90 per cent of people who are in need of drug or alcohol treatment to access it within three weeks. However, as I have just said in response to earlier questions, there is no room for complacency. We know about the vulnerability of the ageing cohort of people who have been using drugs for many years and we must deal with that. Kenny Gibson is right to point out that there is also cause for optimism. Nationally, drug taking among the general population is falling and, as I said, for young people, it is now at the lowest level for a decade. So there is cause for optimism, but we must continue to tackle the problem, because it affects too many lives and often in a very dramatic way.