DDN_July_August_2025 DDN July August 2025 | Seite 4

NEWS ROUND-UP

Scottish alcohol consumption still a‘ significant problem’

Scotland continues to face a significant alcohol problem, says a Public Health Scotland( PHS) report.‘ Despite recent improvements’ people who drink are still consuming an average of more than 21 units weekly, says PHS, with the volume of alcohol sold higher than the amount per adult in England and Wales and the most deprived communities‘ hit hardest’.

The report reveals‘ stark inequalities’, says PHS – with people in the country’ s most deprived areas six times more likely to be hospitalised or die from alcohol-specific causes than those in the least deprived. Scotland introduced minimum unit pricing in 2018, with MSPs last year voting to increase the rate from 50p to 65p. Despite this, Scotland’ s most recent
alcohol-specific death figures were the highest since 2008, at 1,277( DDN, October 2024, page 4), while a PHS report from earlier this year warned that the number of people with chronic liver disease – most cases of which are alcohol-related – is set to rise by more than 50 per cent over the next two decades.
A report from Audit Scotland last year said the country had been slow to progress its strategies for addressing alcohol harm, with the sheer scale of Scotland’ s ongoing drug death crisis‘ shifting attention away from tackling alcohol issues’. The new data provided compelling evidence that Scotland ' s relationship with alcohol‘ remains deeply problematic and requires immediate attention’, said PHS consultant in public health medicine Dr Tara Shivaji.‘ This
isn ' t inevitable. With urgent, collective and evidence-based action to tackle harmful alcohol use, we can change Scotland ' s path. This means addressing the availability, affordability, and attractiveness of alcohol, as well as providing early intervention and support for people experiencing problems. But that work must start now.’
Maree Todd has been appointed as the Scottish Government’ s minister for drugs and alcohol policy, following the death of Christina McKelvie earlier this year. Todd is the MSP for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross.
Alcohol consumption and harms dashboard at https:// www. publichealthscotland. scot / publications / alcohol-consumptionand-harms-dashboard / alcoholconsumption-and-harmsdashboard-24-june-2025 /
‘ This isn ' t inev itable. With urgent... action to tackle harmful alcohol use, we can change Scotland ' s path.’
DR TARA SHIVAJI
publichealthscotland. scot

Rough sleeping to be decriminalised

Cranstoun launches harm reduction chatbot

THE GOVERNMENT HAS CONFIRMED it will formally scrap the 200-year-old Vagrancy Act by next spring, meaning that rough sleeping will no longer be a criminal offence in England and Wales. Although use of the act, which was introduced in 1824 to deal with rising rates of homelessness after the Industrial Revolution and Napoleonic Wars, has‘ significantly declined’ in recent years it remains legally enforceable.
Support services frequently report that criminalisation discourages people sleeping rough from seeking help, said Homeless Link.‘ The homelessness support services we represent, many of whom work every day with people who regularly sleep rough, know the focus needs to be on supporting people into a secure home while addressing their other needs, not sanction and prosecution,’ said chief executive Rick Henderson.
The number of people estimated to be sleeping rough in England on a single night was 4,667 in autumn 2024, according to the most recent figures – 20 per cent up on the previous year and the third increase in a row – while ONS figures from 2022 showed that almost two in five deaths of people either sleeping rough or using emergency accommodation were drug-related( DDN, December 2022, page 4).
A NEW AI CHATBOT able to provide accurate answers to‘ basic and complex’ questions about drugs and harm reduction has been launched by Cranstoun. Drugbot, delivered in partnership with technology-based harm reduction social enterprise Substancy, can give information on issues like safer behaviours, dosage and aftercare, says the charity, with people urged to contact professional drug workers when any‘ particularly risky’ behaviour is identified.
The bot’ s responses to more than 20,000 questions were tested as part of its pilot programme, with all the responses rigorously checked by drug service professionals.
‘ We know that for many people it can take a lot of confidence to come and speak to someone in one of our drug and alcohol services about their drug and alcohol use,’ said Cranstoun’ s director of services, Megan Jones.
‘ The Drugbot is seeking to break down some of those barriers and will be able to suggest that people do seek in person face-to-face help too. It’ s really important that our drug and alcohol services aren’ t left behind by the rapidly changing technology landscape, and the ways in which many people communicate.’ See feature, page 12
4 • DRINK AND DRUGS NEWS • JULY / AUGUST 2025 WWW. DRINKANDDRUGSNEWS. COM