Figures show that 1,500 drug-addicted babies have been born in Scotland since 2017
Opposition parties have called for a significant increase in funding for addictions in Scotland after it emerged that more than 1,500 drug-addicted babies have been born in recent years.
Scotland’s Liberal Democrats said data from the country’s health board shows around 200 babies are born every year with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), a sign that their mothers took addictive drugs or abused alcohol during pregnancy.
Alex Cole-Hamilton, Scotland’s Lib Dem leader, has urged John Swinney, the first minister, to spend more on tackling drug addiction in the new budget or risk losing his party’s support.
Swinney’s minority government needs votes from at least one opposition party to get the budget passed, but the draft plans imply a freeze on spending on rehabilitation and support for drug and alcohol addicts. Scottish Labor has endorsed Cole-Hamilton’s demand.
“There may be no worse start to a newborn’s life than being born dependent on drugs,” Cole-Hamilton said.
“The Scottish Government regularly makes headlines for their mishandling of drug deaths, but in many other ways drug abuse can make lives a misery.
“Nicola Sturgeon (a former First Minister) made cuts to drug and alcohol services and predictably this meant some services closed their doors and valuable expertise was lost. The current budget proposed by John Swinney risks making the same mistake again.”
Scotland has long had the highest drug deaths per capita in Europe, with 1,172 deaths in 2023; About 80% of the deaths involved various opioids and about 40% involved cocaine.
Ministers have repeatedly pledged to fight this record but have failed to make significant progress. Although the death rate fell in 2022, down 279 from 2021, it was still 2.9 times higher than for Britain as a whole.
NHS data shows that from the 2017-2018 financial year to date, there have been at least 1,501 neonatal abstinence syndrome births. Some health boards recorded no NAS cases at all, while others were unable to provide full figures.
The draft budget shows that spending on alcohol and drugs policy will increase at a rate lower than inflation, from £80.4 million to £80.9 million. Scottish ministers say they will spend £112 million on alcohol and drugs partnerships, but suggested this was a standstill budget.
Neil Gray, Scotland’s Health Secretary, said: “No newborn baby should be born substance-dependent and mothers should be able to get the help they need, free from judgment and stigma.
“We want everyone who is harmed by alcohol or drug use to have access to the support they need. Record levels of funding have been protected in next year’s Budget.”