Trends in drug-related deaths
About 2 mins
Drug-related deaths have increased across the UK but most starkly in Scotland where they have quadrupled over the past decade
This chart shows trends in the drug-related death rate (age-standardised) in the UK between 2000 and 2023.
- In 2000, the rates of drug-related deaths were very similar across England, Wales and Scotland: 5.3 deaths per 100,000 in Wales and Scotland and 5.5 per 100,000 in England.
- Since then, rates have increased steadily in England and Wales, up to 9.1 deaths per 100,000 in England and 12.9 per 100,000 in Wales.
- Data for Northern Ireland are only available from 2012 onwards. However, they show a similar upward trend since then to 9.1 deaths per 100,000 in 2023.
The mortality rate in Scotland has grown much faster, to a high of 25.6 deaths per 100,000 in 2020 – three times as high as the rates in England. Although rates did improve in 2022, the latest data for 2023 shows a continued worsening. This rise has been driven by an increase in deaths in the most deprived areas in Scotland.
- Drug-related deaths refers to deaths related to drug poisoning and drug misuse.
- Age-standardised deaths rates refer to a weighted average of the age-specific death rates per 100,000 people.
Source: Health Foundation analysis of Office for National Statistics, Deaths related to drug poisoning, England and Wales, 2023; National Records of Scotland, Drug-related Deaths in Scotland, 2023; Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency, Drug Related and Drug Misuse Deaths, 2023
