DRUGS DEATHS DOWN BUT 'NO ROOM FOR COMPLACENCY'

THE NUMBER of people dying from drugs in the Lothians has fallen over the
past year.

Forty-six people died from drug-related deaths in 2006 - down from 57 the
previous year.

The use of heroin and cocaine has also fallen in the Lothians, however, the
number of crack cocaine users has increased.

In 2006-07, a quarter of all crack users in Scotland came from the
Lothians, totalling 126 people.

This is a rise of seven from the previous year.

The highest number of deaths in the region - 16 - involved diazepam,
although alcohol is cited as the cause of a further 21 deaths.

Tom Wood, head of the Edinburgh Drugs and Alcohol Action Team, welcomed the
decrease in drug deaths in the region, but warned against complacency.

He said: "We are pleased that there has been a slight decrease, but we are
not complacent, it could well rise again and it doesn't remove the fact
there is still a considerable problem.

"There are 500 people in this area who are still in treatment for drug use."

The number of people using heroin in the Lothians last year was 1186, down
from 1629 the previous year.

Cocaine use was also down, from 192 in 2005-06 to 151 last year.

Minister for Community Safety Fergus Ewing said: "These statistics present
a stark snapshot of the challenges Scotland faces in tackling the scourge
of drugs."