Drugs

Depicting Scottish drugs policy and practice over a thirty year period to 2011 the authors use Scotland as a case study of how modern drugs policy evolved in a small country with liberal traditions and the highest rates of substance use problems in Europe. Building on the authors' knowledge and experience of Scottish policy and practice, and existing documentation about Scottish policy, the study also draws on interviews with some key stakeholders who have worked to shape modern Scottish policies and practices. Scottish drugs policy makes a particularly interesting case study because Scotland is small enough, with fewer than six million people, to be comprehended in its full complexity. Scottish policy can been seen either as a failure, since illicit drugs have spread everywhere in Scotland despite the country's lack of natural illicit drug resources, or as a success, as anti-drug policies have become relatively humane and are oriented towards helping people with substance use problems, rather than merely trying to eradicate drug use. The book will be of interest to those working against drugs in Scotland and of wider interest to those involved in formulating or assessing drugs policies elsewhere.