Somerset health director backs controversial drug consumption rooms

Somerset’s Public Health Director has said that she wants a drug consumption room in her area.

Alison Bell spoke to the BBC about her “dream” of opening a shooting gallery in England to allow drug addicts to use illegal substances without fear of arrest. She referenced the controversial pilot scheme in Glasgow, and claimed it had shown positive early indications of harm reduction.

In Glasgow, The Thistle shooting gallery was used by 599 registered users, with “over 8,300 injecting episodes” in its first full year of operation up to January 2026.

The shooting gallery’s three-year pilot project is being funded by the Scottish Government at a cost of £2.3 million per annum to the taxpayer and has been strongly criticised by local residents.

Significant harms

Bell said: “My dream would be to have a safe injecting space where there is medical supervision, so that people who are addicted to substances can use those substances safely and have medical support if they need it.”

The Public Health Director was challenged on whether these consumption rooms would legitimise taking drugs by suggesting that the drugs are sometimes safe if they have been tested, or if it has approval from the authorities, but she dismissed concerns.

She responded: “I should have said it’s not ‘safe’ injecting spaces, it’s ‘safer’, because there’s still really significant harms associated with drug taking.”

Bell continued that “hopefully”, through conversation at the rooms, “we can engage in a programme of behaviour change to limit use and, you know, help people recover”.

A distraction

Head of Communications at The Christian Institute, Angus Saul, said: “We all want to limit the harm from illegal drug use, but facilitating people taking them will only backfire by making dangerous drug taking more accessible.

“There is no ‘safe’ way to take these substances. What England really needs is greater investment in treatment which encourages people to stop using these harmful and addictive substances.

“Drug consumption rooms promote further harm, and are a distraction from finding real, lasting solutions to this problem. They feed addiction, condemning people to staying on drugs, rather than helping them get off them.”

‘Failed experiment’

The Canadian province of Ontario announced in March that it is closing all of its drug consumption rooms, calling it a “failed experiment”.

Posting on X, Premier of Ontario Doug Ford explained: “Drug injection sites are a failed experiment that make communities unsafe and trap vulnerable people in addiction. Instead of standing by as addictions get worse, we’re funding treatment and lasting recovery while keeping our communities safe.”

The last drug consumption room is expected to be closed by July, after nine were shut down last year. The decision follows previous legislation that banned such sites within 200 metres of schools and prohibited public consumption of illegal drugs.