In 2012, 47 people died in drug related incidents in Mid-Scotland and Fife according to figures released by the statistical agency ISD Scotland.
Across Scotland there were a further 36 deaths as a result of so-called legal highs, a figure which Murdo Fraser has labelled “extremely concerning.”
Also included within the statistical package was information detailing the cost of prescribing methadone which increased by almost £4 million last year in Scotland.
Murdo Fraser believes these figures underline the deficiencies in current Scottish Government initiatives aimed at improving Scotland’s torrid relationship with illegal substances.
Commenting Murdo Fraser MSP said:
“It is both extremely sad and worrying that 47 lives were lost in Fife, Stirling, Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire as a result of misusing drugs.
“We are losing the war on drugs and the Scottish Government need to understand that they are failing to properly educate Scots as to the lethal side-effects of illegal and so called “legal high” drugs.
“The authorities are facing a massive challenge in coping with the upsurge in people using legal highs. It’s a problem that’s getting worse, and that is clear not only from these drug-death figures today, but the number of those who are being hospitalised as a result.
“Young people need to know that drugs not only ruin lives but they also end them. I want to see better and more substantive education in schools and a hard hitting public awareness campaign that has the potential to really tackle Scotland’s relationship with illegal substances.”