In Scotland, self-reported drug use has declined significantly, new figures by Scotland’s Chief Statistician reveal.
The “Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS) Drug Use Report” showed that during 2012-2013, the percentage of adults admitting to using illicit drugs use was 6.2%, down from 7.6% during 2008-2009. The report also pointed to a drop in drug use among people in the 16-24 age group, with their share falling from 23.5% to 16.4%.
The statistics office identified a drop in the use of both cannabis and cocaine, with the number of adults reporting the use of marijuana declining from 6.2% to 5.1% between 2008-2009 and 2012-2013. Cocaine use was reportedly used by 1.7% of respondents in 2012-2013, down from 2.7% in the comparable period.
Overall, the use of class A drugs (heroin, cocaine, ecstasy and LSD) witnessed a drop of 0.8 percentage points, while the use of Class B drugs (amphetamines, such as speed and barbiturates, and cannabis) declined by 1.1 percentage points last year.
Also, instances of people being offered drugs with the purpose of buying or using them were reported by 13.7% of adults during 2008-2009, while during 2012-2013 their share fell to 10.6%.
Just 0.5% of adults admitted to having taken a new type of drug in the last year, with those reporting the use of mephedrone declining from 0.7% to 0.4%.
The most used drug last year was cannabis, reported by 75.9% of adults taking illegal drugs in the last month. Drug dependency was experienced by 23.2% in the period.
Finding their most desired drugs was “very easy” for 45.4% of adults and “fairly easy” for 39%, according to the report. Use of a number of narcotics in the last year was reported by 54.1% of adults, with 64.2% admitting to having mixed alcohol with illicit substances.