Tackle poverty

Published on Monday 24 May 2010 21:16

Andrew Horne of Addaction is right to denounce the actions of Project Prevention in your report "Outrage over US group's £200 offer to drug addicts to get sterilised" (24 May, 2010).

The real problem for most of Scotland's problematic drug users is the highly-destructive impact of poverty and deprivation at all stages of their lives.

All women – irrespective of whether they are drug users or not – should be offered family planning advice to avoid unwanted pregnancies, but the tactics and underlying agenda of this organisation smack of the discredited eugenics movements of the early 20th century. To suggest wiping out a section of the population as a justifiable response to the ever-widening gap between the rich and poor in our country is appalling and cannot be reconciled with the notion of a just and fair society.

The focus must be on eradicating the health and social inequalities underlying our drugs problem in Scotland.

At the very least, there must be easy access to high-quality treatment programmes – including family planning – which work alongside the wider social support that is vital if vulnerable families are to have a chance of overcoming the overwhelming and often soul-destroying challenges life throws at them.

DAVID LIDDELL

Director

Scottish Drugs Forum

Mitchell Street

Glasgow