1.1 This is the latest edition of an annual paper which provides statistics of drug-related deaths which were registered in Scotland over the period from 1996 to 2008. The figures were produced using a definition of "drug-related deaths" which was introduced in 2001 for the "baseline" figures for the UK Drugs Strategy. This definition was agreed by a working party set up following the publication, by the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, of a report on "Reducing drug related deaths". The Office for National Statistics has also prepared data on drug-related deaths in England and Wales using this definition. This paper's statistics of drug-related deaths are used in the development of policy by the Scottish Government, to inform the discussions and recommendations of its National Forum on Drug-related Deaths, and by a number of other interested parties.
1.2 Section 2 gives some background on the collection of information on drug-related deaths in Scotland. Section 3 describes the figures for Scotland, Section 4 covers the statistics for Health Board areas and Section 5 refers to the figures for Council areas and postcode sectors. Annex A sets out the definition of drug-related deaths used in this paper; Annex B refers to, and gives figures for, some other definitions of drug-related deaths; Annex C provides some References; and Annex D contains the questionnaire used to collect further information about drug-related deaths with effect from 2008.
1.3 The main improvements which have been made for this edition are: