Drugs and the Party Line

by Kevin Williamson, Irvine Welsh (Foreword)

The use of recreational drugs has become the subject of an unprecedented national debate over the past year. The outbreak of media hysteria following the death of Leah Betts and others has provoked leading politicians into declaring a war on drugs. Illegal drugs have been described as the new "enemy within" and drug-users equated with a "medieval plague". Any semblance of rational debate has been buried beneath the hysteria. The first casualty of any war is truth and for the war against drugs this has been no different. This volume aims to cut through the hysteria, hype and myths surrounding the use of recreational drugs in an accessible and informed way. Sticking to the facts, the book asks the questions that the politicians should really be addressing. This book not only answers these questions, but puts forward a full political manifesto for changing existing drug laws based on progressive drug-specific policies of harm reduction, de-criminalization of drug-users, plus controlled availability for some drugs. The target audience is the 16-35 age group: those people who are recreational drug users, and are interested in the politics and current affairs surrounding the subject.

152 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Kevin Williamson (born 1961) is a Scottish writer, publisher, and activist. He is a Scottish socialist and republican and was an activist for the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP). He was also the architect of their radical drug policy, which included the legalisation of cannabis and the provision under the National Health Service of free synthetic heroin to addicts under medical supervision to combat the problems of drugs in working class communities. He wrote a regular weekly column, "Rebel Ink", for the Scottish Socialist Voice.

His first collection of poetry, In a Room Darkened, was published in 2007 by Two Ravens Press.

In December 2010, with fellow poet Michael Pederson, Kevin Williamson founded Neu! Reekie! A prize winning literary production house they describe as “a literary, music and animation collective with an international output; plus a record label and publishing house in tow”