PRESSURE GROUP SEEKS MORE HELP FOR COCAINE USERS

Scotland is lacking specialist services to treat a growing cocaine
problem, according to campaigners.

The Scottish Drugs Forum said there were only two publicly funded
centres specifically for cocaine users in Scotland though a growing
number of deaths involve the class A drug.

Both are in the east of Scotland, in Aberdeen and Edinburgh, while
cocaine has been cited as a factor in one in five drug-related deaths
in the greater Glasgow area.

In 2005, cocaine was involved in 44 drug-related deaths in Scotland,
the most since records began in 1996.

David Liddell, director of the forum, said: "Much more requires to be
done to respond to the ever-growing problems posed by Scotland's
increased cocaine use.

"Cocaine's image means that messages on risk must be seen as being
credible and realistic by current and potential users, otherwise they
will ignore what they're told.

"Cocaine users who develop a problem will require treatment quite
different from that offered by traditional services, which tend to be
geared to heroin-related problems."