The editor of a daily newspaper which has demanded the decriminalisation of drug use has hailed the “incredibly positive” response to its campaign.
HTFP reported earlier this month how the Daily Record had used its front page to make the call after its investigation had prompted the conclusion that drug dealers must be targeted, but that it was time to stop treating addicts as criminals.
David Dick, editor of the Glasgow-based Record, had now praised the response the campaign has had.
His praise comes after the Record splashed yesterday on new figures which confirm Scotland has the highest rate of drug-related deaths in the world.
David told HTFP: “The release of yesterday’s drug-death figures has finally woken up the rest of the media to the fact that Scotland is in the midst of a national emergency. People are dying in record numbers and sitting back, ignoring the issue is not an option for a campaigning newspaper like the Daily Record.
We have been writing about Scotland’s drug crisis for some time and our Addicted campaign, led by chief reporter Mark McGivern, has included voices from all different sides of what can be a polarising debate. Mark traveled to Spain and Portugal where radical changes to drug laws have seen a huge decrease in drug-related deaths.
“With that experience and, considering the opinions of people working across all areas of the drug debate, from politicians to the police, to experts working with drug users, we came to the conclusion that a call for decriminalisation was the best way we could contribute to tackling this crisis.
“The response has been incredibly positive and as the former presiding officer of the Scottish Parliament, Tricia Marwick said, our bold move has given politicians the green light to publicly support such a radical proposal. Yesterday’s horrific figures have only added more weight to the argument that this crisis is now completely out of control and our front page illustrates the grave reality of Scotland in 2019.”
Can’t fault the heading.
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