HC Deb 11 April 1984 vol 58 cc366-9
2. Mr. David Marshall

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the percentage increase in the number of registered drug addicts in Scotland since 1978; what is his estimate of the increase in drug taking in Scotland; and if he will make a statement.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (Mr. John MacKay)

The numbers formally notified to the Home Office as being addicted to narcotic drugs was 85 in 1978 and 574 in 1983—an increase of 575 per cent. Research has suggested that the actual numbers may be about fives times the number of formal notifications.

Mr. Marshall

Is the Minister not horrified and ashamed at those figures, which are a terrible indictment of the Government? Is he aware of the excellent campaign being waged by the Daily Record, and did he see its editorial on Thursday? Will the Government take positive action, by restoring many of the 1,000 redundant Customs and Excise officers to their posts and by introducing harsher penalties on the evil people who trade in drugs, including confiscation of their profits and assets?

Mr. MacKay

I am sure that every hon. Member is horrified by the figures and the increase in drug addiction, not only in this country, but throughout western Europe. I welcome the campaign that the Daily Record has waged and I hope that it brings home to young people, especially, and to their parents, the utterly self-destructive course on which they set themselves if they take drugs. I hope that those who over the years have stylishly advocated the drugs scene as something intellectual and clever are thoroughly ashamed of themselves. Like the hon. Gentleman, I hope that the police will be able to catch many more of the evil men who indulge in this trade, and hope that the courts will deal with them severely.

Mr. Hirst

Is my hon. Friend aware that the measures which he announced this week to fund projects to help those involved in the misuse of drugs have been widely welcomed in Scotland? However, is he also aware that the chief constable of Strathclyde stated recently that Glasgow was the second centre for heroin in the United Kingdom? Will my hon. Friend have urgent discussions with his ministerial colleagues to find ways of reducing the supply of heroin? Is a contributory cause of the upsurge in heroin supplies the reduction in the number of Customs and Excise staff?

Mr. MacKay

The size of the special investigations branch of the Customs and Excise, which is directly concerned with this matter, has been increased over the past few years, so I do not think that one can look to the Customs and Excise for a reason for the increase. I thank my hon. Friend for his kind words about the £500,000 that I have announced will be given to 13 projects, mostly in Strathclyde and Lothian, to help those who are addicted to drugs. It is extremely difficult to get people off the heroin habit, but I hope that the projects will succeed and that, with the help of action by the police and other authorities, we shall be able to curb this appalling trade.

Dr. M. S. Miller

Is the hon. Gentleman satisfied with the investigation of this problem—apart from the chicken-feed that he is giving for those who are already hooked on the drug? Drug taking is not inevitable. Do the Government not have a responsibility to find out why it is taking place? There is ample evidence in other countries. Is the hon. Gentleman satisfied that Scotland should tail on after other countries which have millions of young people on the habit?

Mr. MacKay

The United Kingdom and other countries are looking at what causes addiction, not just to drugs, but to other things. I readily accept that drug addiction is very dangerous. We look at all the evidence, not only in our country, but throughout the world, to try to discover why people become addicted. I think that some of the remarks that I made at the beginning are relevant. Over the last decade or two some people have suggested that being on soft drugs is the clever Dick thing to do. However, the one leads to the other and we should be against the whole drugs scene. I hope that all those in responsible positions in this House will join me in that condemnation.

Mr. Corrie

Does my hon. Friend agree that people are now becoming hooked on drugs at a very early age? Does he receive any reports on what is happening in schools? Will he consider going so far as to carry out a survey to see how serious the problem is among very young people?

Mr. MacKay

I am sure that my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State who is responsible for education, my hon. Friend the Member for Eastwood (Mr. Stewart), heard that request. When considering drug dependence, schools and education authorities look at the problem, among other things, of how to get the message about drugs over to youngsters. However, as with all these things, the difficult choice is between telling children about it and so exposing some of them to a problem which they would never have found out about and educating those who are likely to fall for it.

Mr. Martin

Surely the Minister cannot give himself a pat on the back just because he has announced to a press conference that he is to spend about £500,000 on 13 projects. When that is averaged out, it amounts to about £43,000 per project. That is a derisory sum, given that the drug pushers in Scotland make more money in a week than he is prepared to put in. What is the Secretary of State going to do about training in the Health Service, given that he is prepared to spend only £15,000 on one project that involves training, and expert training at that?

Mr. MacKay

I cannot agree that £500,000 this year is chicken-feed. It is a three-year programme for £1.5 million, which is a substantial amount of money, to spend on those projects. We are spending more than £100,000 per year on the project at the Southern General in Glasgow. I am surprised that the hon. Gentleman does not welcome the news that we are taking such positive steps, instead of apparently condemning what we are doing.

Mr. Maclennan

It is easy to condemn drug taking, as the Minister has done, but why has he not condemned the increased availability of hard drugs? What steps are the Government taking to increase the resources of the police in order to stop this trafficking?

Mr. MacKay

I thought that I condemned fairly loudly and clearly the evil trade in such drugs. Perhaps the hon. Gentleman will speak to his other pals in the alliance about the motion at their conference suggesting the legitimisation of some drugs. We might get somewhere if such nonsense did not come up in public. The Government are giving full support to the police in Scotland, who have set up drug squads to try to rout out this evil problem. As I have said, the Government—if not the Liberal party—are behind that move.

Mr. O'Neill

We welcome the announcement as far as it goes, but we are concerned that the length of time is only three years and that within that period there may well be a further increase in drug addiction in parts of Scotland that are not covered by the projects. We ask the Minister not to close the door. We are not among the sponsors of the so-called drug culture which he seeks to accuse his erstwhile political colleagues of sponsoring.

Mr. MacKay

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his support of the points that I made about this dangerous practice. Of course I am aware that the pattern may change during the next three years. I shall be very sympathetic towards any projects that are proposed to deal with that changing pattern. At the end of the three-year period we shall look very keenly at the results of the programme and will consider what to do thereafter.

Several Hon. Members

rose——

Mr. Speaker

Order. I have allowed a good run on this question, which I know is of great importance. We must proceed more rapidly. I ask for shorter supplementary questions, and perhaps even shorter answers.