Scotland sees lowest recorded drug deaths since 2017

This is a decrease of 13% (155 deaths) compared with 2023 and the lowest number registered since 2017.

Despite the decrease, Scotland continues to have the highest rates of drug deaths in the UK and remains the worst in Europe. 

The decline follows last year’s 12% rise that saw deaths climb to 1,172.

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Drug misuse deaths are still much more common in the most deprived communities.

For all causes of death, mortality rates are around twice as high in the most deprived areas as the least deprived. When it comes to drug misuse deaths, it’s 12 times as high in the most deprived communities.

Glasgow City, Dundee City and Inverclyde council areas had the highest rates of drug misuse deaths in the period 2020-2024. 

Phillipa Haxton, Head of Vital Events Statistics, said: “These statistics show a decrease in drug misuse deaths over the last year and represent the lowest number of deaths in the last seven years.

“The longer term trend shows that drug misuse deaths are still much more common than they were two decades ago.

“The statistics also provide information about the people who died of a drug misuse death. The figures show us that males continue to be more than twice as likely to have a drug misuse death as females.” 

After adjusting for age, there were 19.1 drug misuse deaths per 100,000 people in 2024. This was 3.6 times as high as compared to the year 2000.

The most common drugs implicated were opiates and opioids (present in 80% of deaths), benzodiazepines (56%) and cocaine (47%). While deaths involving opiates and opioids, and benzodiazepines decreased in 2024, deaths which implicated cocaine remained at their highest level on record, with 479 deaths for the second consecutive year.

More than nine out of ten (91%) of drug misuse deaths were classified as accidental poisonings, with 6% classed as intentional self-poisonings.

The rate of drug poisoning deaths in Scotland in 2023 was around two to three times the rate of other UK countries. This is in line with the longer term trend, with Scotland having a higher rate for the last decade. 

The drug poisoning mortality rate in Scotland in 2023 was 2.8 times as high as the rates in England and Northern Ireland, and 1.9 times as high as the rate in Wales. Data for 2023 is the most recent year that data is available across the UK. 

There have been over 6,000 drug deaths since the Scottish Government declared the issue a public health emergency in September 2019.

Scottish Labour has said more must be done to save lives. 

Scottish Labour health spokesperson Jackie Baillie MSP said: “Every life lost to drugs is a tragedy and each has a devastating impact on families and communities across the country.

“While it is welcome that there has been progress made towards reducing the number of fatalities, there are still far too many lives being needlessly cut short.

“Scotland’s drug emergency is claiming far too many lives and more must be done to not only save lives but ensure that people can get the recovery support that they need.

“The SNP government must also work with Police Scotland, local authorities and health boards to ensure that those making money out of this misery are held to account, while their victims have the best possible chance of recovery.”

The Scottish Liberal Democrats have described the figures as a "national tragedy". 

Responding to the figures, Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said: “It is a national tragedy that 85 people every month are dying in Scotland’s drug deaths emergency.

“After the SNP slashed funding for drug services in 2015, even Nicola Sturgeon admitted her government had “taken its eye off the ball”.

“My party is fighting hard to unpick that damage, which is why we made access to drug and alcohol services a major part of our budget negotiations earlier this year, securing support for a new facility for mothers and their babies born addicted to drugs." 

Scotland’s official drugs deaths figures for 2024 “lay bare the tragic human toll” of years of SNP failure, the Scottish Conservatives have said.

Scottish Conservative shadow drugs minister Annie Wells said: “These devastating figures lay bare the tragic human toll of Scotland’s drugs emergency which has spiralled out of control on the SNP’s watch.

“It’s heartbreaking and intolerable that so many lives continue to be lost, and so many families left bereft, because Scotland has the highest drugs death rate in Europe. And it’s shameful that, as ever with this Nationalist government, those living in the poorest areas are worst affected.

“SNP ministers have repeatedly taken their eye off the ball, and still have no coherent and credible strategy for tackling this national crisis.

“Despite pinning all their hopes on drugs consumption rooms being the solution, the fatality rate so far in 2025 – since The Thistle opened – is up once again.

“Instead of state-sponsored drug-taking, the focus should be on treatment and rehab. John Swinney must stop the dithering and finally back the Scottish Conservatives’ Right to Recovery Bill, which will guarantee every Scot the right to receive potentially life-saving treatment.”

Drugs and Alcohol Policy Minister Maree Todd said ‘there is still work to be done’ by the Scottish Government to deal with the harm caused by drugs.

During a visit to The Scheme Livi recovery project, which offers a variety of creative workshops to support people dealing with substance use, Ms Todd said: “My heartfelt condolences go to all those affected by the loss of a loved one through drugs.

“It is welcome that we have seen progress with the number of deaths at the lowest level since 2017, but I know there is still work to be done and we will continue to do everything we can to save and improve lives.

“This is particularly true as we face new threats from highly dangerous synthetic opioids like nitazenes, which further raise the risk of overdose and death.

“That is why we are providing record levels of funding for drugs and alcohol programmes and widening access to treatment, residential rehabilitation and life-saving naloxone. We have also supported and funded the opening of the UK’s first Safer Drug Consumption Facility and are working at pace to deliver drug-checking facilities.

“The spread of grassroots support, enhanced by our funding of more than 300 organisations and projects, has also made a difference on the ground. However, we will always want to do more and will continue to work hard to adapt to new patterns of consumption and demand to direct support where it is most needed.”