Highland and Moray ranked among Scotland’s top drink and drug driving hotspots

Highland is among the country’s worst areas for drink and drug driving, “troubling” new figures have revealed.

New statistics from Police Scotland have ranked Highland as the third-worst council area in Scotland for driving under the influence offences, per head of population.

Last year’s rate of 27.7 recorded offences per 10,000 people was nearly twice the national average.

And, for the first time, the number of drug driving offences was higher than the drink driving total.

But this figure actually marks a small improvement for Highland compared to the year before, which saw the region rank as the country’s worst hotspot for drink and drug driving.

Highland has been in the top three areas for the offences in nine of the last ten years, and also topped the rankings in 2019.

Douglas Ross, MSP for the Highlands and Islands, said the figures were “troubling” and took aim at those who continue to drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

He also argued that there will “always be an alternative to drink driving”, even for those in the most rural areas.

“There is simply no excuse or reason for anyone to drink drive and it is troubling to see Moray and the Highlands with some of the highest numbers of offenders per head of population anywhere in Scotland,” he added.

“The risks are so well known and obvious.

“Drink driving can lead to lives being lost or irrevocably changed forever and I’m actually shocked we should still be having to say this.

“Even in more remote and rural areas there will always be an alternative to drink driving so there is never an excuse for taking such a huge risk with your own life, or the lives of others.”

A spokesman for the Highland Alcohol and Drug Partnership suggested that the high rate of offences could be down to the area’s lack of public transport and rural nature.

He also argued that a dramatic rise in the rate, from 2019 onwards, was because figures were changed to include drug driving offences from October 2019 onwards.

However, the Highlands were among the country’s highest both before and after the change in statistics.

The new Police Scotland figures have also revealed that Moray had the fourth-highest rate of drink driving last year.

The spokesman said: “Highland's rate increased when drugs offences were introduced and have remained fairly high since then.”