Scottish Government continues to fail youngsters despite years of promises

Despite years of promises, the Scottish Government is still failing youngsters across the country. Two grieving families who both lost loved ones to suicide have today spoken out of support of the Record’s Save Young Lives campaign. A mum and a sister of victims have a clear message to the SNP Government: Suicide statistics are not coming down, proving that what is already being done is not working. Helen Mitchell is demanding action ten years on from the loss of her son Jack to suicide. She says, despite starting her own foundation a decade ago to fight teen suicide rates, nothing has changed. She and other campaigners said they were ready to offer their own knowledge and experience to help save lives. But the mum said promise of change failed to deliver. Shannon Brown tells a similar story, her brother committed suicide in 2018 but despite campaigning hard and getting assurances, nothing has changed. The Record launched its Save Young Lives campaign earlier this month in a bid to tackle the issue. Our campaign makes three key demands. Firstly, every school in Scotland should provide suicide prevention education . Secondly, all political parties should be committed to reducing waiting times for kids’ mental health. And all adults in Scotland should play a part in arming themselves with the key facts around youth suicide - and knowledge of where to get help. These are basic asks. Helen and Shannon’s experiences prove why they must be answered as a priority. It’s no secret that Scotland remains the drugs deaths capital of Europe . The annual number of fatalities may have dropped to its lowest level since 2017, but the total remains far ahead of what it was 20 years ago. Due to its illegal nature, the drugs market is constantly evolving thanks to a complete lack of formal oversight. Health workers like ambulance crews and addiction charities are the frontline in identifying worrying new trends that could cost lives. It’s with this in mind that Labour has warned Scotland is undergoing a rise in synthetic opioid use that “could resemble America’s fentanyl crisis” if it is not acted upon urgently. The Record last week revealed fears from experts that a so-called National Mission to reduce drug deaths achieved little other than spending £250million for some positive headlines. And when it starts to slip away on your watch, there’s really only one thing to do: follow it out of the door.