DRUG-related deaths are at a 10-year peak in Inverclyde

Bleak new figures show that since 2014, 100 people have died locally as a result of substance abuse.

It means the rate of drug-related deaths per head of the population is the third worst in the country, behind second-placed Glasgow and Dundee at the top of the table.

Last year, 24 people in Inverclyde died due to the scourge - the highest number in a decade, according to the latest figures from the National Records of Scotland.

It reflects the picture nationally, with the country now having the unwanted tag as the drug death capital of Europe.

Inverclyde MP Ronnie Cowan has been leading calls for a radical overhaul of the current system to help tackle addiction, including decriminalising narcotics and introducing safe consumption rooms.

Mr Cowan said: "If we are to address the issues highlighted by the figures then we, first and foremost, have to recognise that problematic drug use is a health issue. "Only by coming at it from that angle will we be able to address the problems. "Many of us have been asking for a safe drug consumption facility in Glasgow.

"This will not solve the problem but it will go part way to reducing the spread of HIV and Hep C. "It will give medical and social work professionals the chance to engage with people with complex health issues. "It will help us to offer the correct level of help and support. "Such facilities have been successful in reducing deaths and harm in countries across the globe. "It's now time for the UK Government to sanction them in the UK or devolve the powers to the Scottish Government so they can pioneer such facilities here in Scotland."

There were 1,187 drug-related deaths in Scotland last year - 27 per cent more than in 2017 and the highest since records began in 1996.

Inverclyde MSP Stuart McMillan says the figures are 'shocking'. He said: "Drugs misuse brings carnage to communities and destroys lives. "Inverclyde's record is one of the worst and these figures must be a wake-up call to society that more and radical action is needed. "Clearly, a justice-centred approach is not working and is costing lives."

Locally, the number of drug-related deaths has rocketed from five in 2008 to a record 24 last year, which was one more than in 2017.

During those 10 years, 172 people have died in Inverclyde as a result of drugs.

Councillor Robert Moran, Inverclyde's health and social care convener, said: "Behind every single one of the statistics of drug related deaths is a life that didn't need to be lost. "We need all parts of our community working together to make sure that as parents we are supporting our young people, that people have positive choices to make at key points in their lives, that enforcement is there to remove drugs from our streets, that the right support is in place to help people get clean and that we are all working together to make sure that people who get themselves drug-free have the choices and support to live long, healthy and happy lives.”

Martin McCluskey, Inverclyde's Labour general election candidate, added: "Alongside treatment, rehabilitation and education there needs to be proper action taken against the drug dealers and criminal gangs who exploit the most vulnerable.

"Dealers should face the full force of the law - they are behind the deaths of hundreds of people."