Alexander urges Swinney to focus on drugs death ‘crisis’ instead of independence

Scottish Secretary Douglas Alexander has urged First Minister John Swinney’s government to focus on Scotland’s drug-death crisis rather than independence.

Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland’s Breakfast programme, Mr Alexander said the Scottish Government should be “tackling the crisis on Scotland’s streets”, after 1,133 deaths from drug use were recorded in 2025—an 11% increase on the previous year.

He described the figures as “deeply upsetting” and said Scotland continued to have the highest drugs death rate in Europe. He called the impact on affected families “personally devastating” and described the deaths as a “national shame for Scotland”.

The figures showed a 19% increase in drug-use deaths among males and a 5% decrease among females compared with 2024.

Mr Alexander also criticised Mr Swinney’s focus on independence after the Scottish Parliament backed a motion declaring that Scotland had the right to decide its own future. He said the parliamentary vote was less important than the drug deaths recorded in Scotland.

While Mr Alexander said Scots had always had the right to decide their future, he argued that the conditions which led to the 2014 independence referendum did not exist today. He said there had previously been consensus across the Scottish and UK parliaments, Scottish political parties and civic life.

He also said Mr Swinney had previously set the threshold for an independence referendum at a majority of SNP members of the Scottish Parliament, adding that he had “failed to cross it”.

Mr Alexander said the UK Government was nevertheless willing to discuss the future of devolution with SNP ministers and local government leaders. “My door is open,” he said. “We’re ready, willing and able to have those conversations.”