Today, the Office for National Statistics has published the latest estimates of how many people across England and Wales use drugs, and the Department of Health and Social Care has published updated estimates of the use of opioids (including heroin) and crack cocaine.
Dr Will Haydock, Chief Executive of Collective Voice, the national alliance of drug and alcohol treatment and recovery charities, released the following statement:
Harm from drug use is an urgent issue that the Government must respond to now
These figures show that there are many thousands of people across England and Wales who are at risk of harm from substance use, including over 300,000 people using opioids such as heroin or crack cocaine.
While most people who use drugs do so without serious harm occurring to them or those around them, there remain risks to using drugs, and some people will develop serious and long-term problems.
Fortunately, we know that treatment works to help people turn their lives around and delivers a good return on investment for public services and communities.[i]
More people are accessing support than ever before, but these gains are at risk
Multiple years of austerity in England took their toll on what had once been a world-leading treatment system. In 2021, an Independent Review conducted by Dame Carol Black recommended an investment plan staged over five years to ensure services were accessible and effective.[ii]
Now, after just three years of targeted investment, more people are now being supported than at any point on record.[iii] Sadly, these gains are now at risk, as the Government seems to have abandoned the recommendations of Dame Carol’s review, freezing funding at year three levels.
The reality is that a freeze in funding must eventually lead to cuts in services, given the additional pressures being placed on charities.[iv] This will mean either fewer people will be able to access treatment, or the intensity of support will have to reduce.
The time to act is now
Today’s statistics illustrate the scale and urgency of the issue, and this picture is only confirmed by other indicators. We are seeing the highest rates of drug-related deaths ever recorded[v], and the emergence of synthetic opioids in the UK has prompted the National Crime Agency to warn that ‘there has never been a more dangerous time to take drugs’.[vi]
Therefore we must not delay action. The Government must reaffirm its commitment to this work by restoring the 5-year programme of investment recommended by Dame Carol Black in her 2021 independent review, and it must produce a plan of action for the full range of relevant departments and organisations to work together to reduce deaths and harm related to drugs.
This week has seen the publication of a new Government youth strategy and a national plan to end homelessness, which are both needed and welcome. But we now urgently need to see the same commitment on reducing harm related to alcohol and other drugs.
This will also help the Government achieve their wider aims. Ministers have publicly stated that the current approach to healthcare is ‘unsustainable’[vii] and the criminal justice system is on ‘the brink of collapse’.[viii] If we are to address these issues, we must talk about alcohol and other drugs.
With a clear plan and the necessary investment, we can save lives and help communities and the economy thrive, reducing pressure on the NHS, the criminal justice system and wider public services, including social care.
As Dame Carol explained back in 2021, ‘Government faces an unavoidable choice: invest in tackling the problem or keep paying for the consequences.’ This is an urgent call for the current Government to make the right choice and tackle the problems related to alcohol and other drugs head on by re-starting the programme of investment recommended in the independent review.
Help is available in your local community
Our member charities provide support services across the country, and help is available in every local community free at the point of use. If you need support yourself, or you’re worried about someone else, then please do get in touch with your local service. You are not alone. Thousands of people like you are already accessing support across the country. Just search at: https://www.talktofrank.com/get-help/find-support-near-you
Notes:
[i] Dame Carol Black’s review stated that Official estimates published in 2018 suggested that substance use treatment provided £2.4bn benefits, with £4 return on every £1 invested in drug treatment totalling £21 over 10 years, and £3 return on alcohol treatment totalling £26 over 10 years. See also https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/alcohol-and-drug-prevention-treatment-and-recovery-why-invest/alcohol-and-drug-prevention-treatment-and-recovery-why-invest
[ii] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/independent-review-of-drugs-by-professor-dame-carol-black
[iii] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/substance-misuse-treatment-for-adults-statistics-2024-to-2025
[iv] There have been inflationary pressures on running costs, increases in employer National Insurance contributions, unfunded increases to community pharmacy charges, cost of living increases in wages, and changes to VAT policy.
[v] https://www.ons.gov.uk/releases/deathsrelatedtodrugpoisoninginenglandandwales2024registrations
[vi] https://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/news/there-has-never-been-a-more-dangerous-time-to-take-drugs-says-national-crime-agency-as-annual-threat-assessment-is-published
[vii] https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/secretary-of-states-address-to-the-nhs-providers-conference
[viii] https://www.gov.uk/government/news/deputy-prime-minister-to-announce-swift-and-fair-justice#:~:text=The%20Deputy%20Prime%20Minister%20and,to%20the%20brink%20of%20collapse
Collective Voice responds to the latest estimates of how many people use drugs
Today, the Office for National Statistics has published the latest estimates of how many people across England and Wales use drugs, and the Department of Health and Social Care has published updated estimates of the use of opioids (including heroin) and crack cocaine.
Dr Will Haydock, Chief Executive of Collective Voice, the national alliance of drug and alcohol treatment and recovery charities, released the following statement:
Harm from drug use is an urgent issue that the Government must respond to now
These figures show that there are many thousands of people across England and Wales who are at risk of harm from substance use, including over 300,000 people using opioids such as heroin or crack cocaine.
While most people who use drugs do so without serious harm occurring to them or those around them, there remain risks to using drugs, and some people will develop serious and long-term problems.
Fortunately, we know that treatment works to help people turn their lives around and delivers a good return on investment for public services and communities.[i]
More people are accessing support than ever before, but these gains are at risk
Multiple years of austerity in England took their toll on what had once been a world-leading treatment system. In 2021, an Independent Review conducted by Dame Carol Black recommended an investment plan staged over five years to ensure services were accessible and effective.[ii]
Now, after just three years of targeted investment, more people are now being supported than at any point on record.[iii] Sadly, these gains are now at risk, as the Government seems to have abandoned the recommendations of Dame Carol’s review, freezing funding at year three levels.
The reality is that a freeze in funding must eventually lead to cuts in services, given the additional pressures being placed on charities.[iv] This will mean either fewer people will be able to access treatment, or the intensity of support will have to reduce.
The time to act is now
Today’s statistics illustrate the scale and urgency of the issue, and this picture is only confirmed by other indicators. We are seeing the highest rates of drug-related deaths ever recorded[v], and the emergence of synthetic opioids in the UK has prompted the National Crime Agency to warn that ‘there has never been a more dangerous time to take drugs’.[vi]
Therefore we must not delay action. The Government must reaffirm its commitment to this work by restoring the 5-year programme of investment recommended by Dame Carol Black in her 2021 independent review, and it must produce a plan of action for the full range of relevant departments and organisations to work together to reduce deaths and harm related to drugs.
This week has seen the publication of a new Government youth strategy and a national plan to end homelessness, which are both needed and welcome. But we now urgently need to see the same commitment on reducing harm related to alcohol and other drugs.
This will also help the Government achieve their wider aims. Ministers have publicly stated that the current approach to healthcare is ‘unsustainable’[vii] and the criminal justice system is on ‘the brink of collapse’.[viii] If we are to address these issues, we must talk about alcohol and other drugs.
With a clear plan and the necessary investment, we can save lives and help communities and the economy thrive, reducing pressure on the NHS, the criminal justice system and wider public services, including social care.
As Dame Carol explained back in 2021, ‘Government faces an unavoidable choice: invest in tackling the problem or keep paying for the consequences.’ This is an urgent call for the current Government to make the right choice and tackle the problems related to alcohol and other drugs head on by re-starting the programme of investment recommended in the independent review.
Help is available in your local community
Our member charities provide support services across the country, and help is available in every local community free at the point of use. If you need support yourself, or you’re worried about someone else, then please do get in touch with your local service. You are not alone. Thousands of people like you are already accessing support across the country. Just search at: https://www.talktofrank.com/get-help/find-support-near-you
Notes:
[i] Dame Carol Black’s review stated that Official estimates published in 2018 suggested that substance use treatment provided £2.4bn benefits, with £4 return on every £1 invested in drug treatment totalling £21 over 10 years, and £3 return on alcohol treatment totalling £26 over 10 years. See also https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/alcohol-and-drug-prevention-treatment-and-recovery-why-invest/alcohol-and-drug-prevention-treatment-and-recovery-why-invest
[ii] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/independent-review-of-drugs-by-professor-dame-carol-black
[iii] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/substance-misuse-treatment-for-adults-statistics-2024-to-2025
[iv] There have been inflationary pressures on running costs, increases in employer National Insurance contributions, unfunded increases to community pharmacy charges, cost of living increases in wages, and changes to VAT policy.
[v] https://www.ons.gov.uk/releases/deathsrelatedtodrugpoisoninginenglandandwales2024registrations
[vi] https://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/news/there-has-never-been-a-more-dangerous-time-to-take-drugs-says-national-crime-agency-as-annual-threat-assessment-is-published
[vii] https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/secretary-of-states-address-to-the-nhs-providers-conference
[viii] https://www.gov.uk/government/news/deputy-prime-minister-to-announce-swift-and-fair-justice#:~:text=The%20Deputy%20Prime%20Minister%20and,to%20the%20brink%20of%20collapse
Related Content
Collective Voice responds to the latest statistics on treatment for alcohol and other drug issues
Today’s statistics show the progress and return on investment that charities have delivered. But these gains are now at risk, because the Government has abandoned
Ketamine: Current challenges, successes and next steps for treatment
The meeting showed the importance of bringing people together to share successes, as well as challenges faced, and to discuss potential ways forward. Video of
Collective Voice responds to the Government’s Men’s Health Strategy
If the Government is serious about improving men’s health it must provide the leadership and investment required to reduce deaths and health harm related to