Supervised drug consumption facilities bill passes first reading at Westminster

A Bill on the implementation of Supervised Drug Consumption Facilities has passed its first reading at Westminster.
Alison Thewliss, MP for Glasgow Central, presented her ten minute rule Bill to the Main Chamber on the 14th of March, asking the UK Government to allow for the piloting of a Supervised Drug Consumption Facility (SDCF) in Glasgow city centre.
The MP has been a long-standing advocate for an alternative approach to addressing public drug-injecting, and the associated public health concerns.
The Bill has drawn support from all political parties, with many supporters recognising that the status quo was failing to adequately respond to the issue.
The proposed SDCF in Glasgow would be the first in the UK, where medically trained staff would supervise people using heroin in order to prevent fatal overdoses, and also to provide sterile equipment to minimise the spread of HIV and hepatitis C through contaminated needles.
During her speech, Thewlis referred to the increase in drug-related deaths in Scotland, and also to the estimated 500 people who publicly inject in the city centre.