The number of drug-related deaths in Scotland, one of Europe’s hardest hit by the scourge, started to rise again last year after two years of falling, according to official statistics released published today.

In 2023, 1,172 deaths were attributed to drugs – mainly opiates – which is 12% more than in 2022, ending the decline that had begun after 2020’s record (1,339 deaths), Statistics Scotland (NRS) announced.

Scotland, a British province of five million inhabitants, is registered according to some studies as the European territory with the highest mortality due to drugs.

Within the UK, this death rate is 2.7 times higher in Scotland than in England.

These deaths are predominantly male and, more than any other cause, are closely linked to poverty: residents of the most deprived areas are 15 times more likely to die from overuse than residents of the most affluent areas.

More than 80% of deaths occur after the use of several types of drugs. In 80% of cases, these are opiates such as heroin or methadone – the deadliest substances in Scotland since 2008 – but the NRS reveals the biggest increase in deaths due to benzodiazepines, an anxiolytic (58%), followed by cocaine (41%).

Scotland’s heroin crisis became internationally known in 1996 with the film “Train spotting” by Danny Boyle, set in Edinburgh.

In recent years, the local government has sought to step up its crackdown on drug use and last year’s rise was described as “extremely worrying” by Health Secretary Neil Gray.

“We will step up our efforts and work hard to address the growing threat posed by very dangerous and very powerful synthetic opioids: such as nitazenes,” a press release added.

Nitazenes, 500 times more powerful than morphine, are sometimes mixed with heroin taken by drug addicts without their knowledge.