THE Scottish Conservatives have been accused of turning drug deaths into a “joke” by a prominent campaigner after posting an attack advert about former first minister Nicola Sturgeon on the party’s social media.
The ad features a mugshot of Sturgeon shown alongside her “history” which includes: “record drug deaths, ferries scandal, anti-business agenda, expanding attainment gap, dangerous gender ID reforms” and “constant referendum demands”.
However, drugs campaigner Peter Krykant – who previously set up a safe drugs consumption room in the form of a converted minibus – said that utilising the deaths of people who had died from overdoses in a glib political attack was inappropriate.
What is up with them? The @ScotTories think it's okay to turn the preventable drug deaths of tens of thousands people in 🏴 into some type of joke. Where do they get off? Sad bunch who have no interest in helping reduce drug deaths & just want to score a cheap political point. https://t.co/7rHkAEWCdQ
— Peter Krykant (@PeteKrykant_OPC) June 12, 2023
“What is up with them?
“The @ScotTories think it’s okay to turn the preventable drug deaths of tens of thousands of people into some type of joke. Where do they get off?
“Sad bunch who have no interest in helping reduce drug deaths & just want to score a cheap political point”.
The Scottish Government has advocated for the use of safe consumption rooms as part of moves to try and arrest preventable deaths as a result of drug overdoses.
But the UK Government has so far refused to grant a waiver to the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, which would allow for both the users and staff to be protected from prosecution.
While Krykant’s van project could technically have landed him in hot water with the police, he previously told a Holyrood Committee that Police Scotland officers were actually directing people injecting in alleyways towards his van as a means to try and keep them from overdosing.
