Consumption rooms: a legal place for illegal drugs?

Scotland approves UK's first trial facility where users can take drugs under medical supervision

Drug users in safe consumption room
The trial facility will be located in Glasgow, a city with the worst drug death rate in Europe
(Image credit: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

The UK's first consumption room for illegal drugs has been given the go-ahead by Scotland's authorities.

The trial facility, which will allow users to take drugs hygienically and under medical supervision, will be located in Glasgow, a city that has "long had the worst drug death rate in Europe", where more than 400 drug users "regularly inject in public in the city centre", said Al Jazeera.

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Richard Windsor is a freelance writer for The Week Digital. He began his journalism career writing about politics and sport while studying at the University of Southampton. He then worked across various football publications before specialising in cycling for almost nine years, covering major races including the Tour de France and interviewing some of the sport’s top riders. He led Cycling Weekly’s digital platforms as editor for seven of those years, helping to transform the publication into the UK’s largest cycling website. He now works as a freelance writer, editor and consultant.