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Drowning in drugs the heavy cost of ‘disabled’ addicts

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Taxpayers in Fife, Perthshire, Angus and Dundee hand addicts at least £6.85 million in benefits every year.

In the second part of our special investigation, The Courier today reveals that thousands of people in Tayside and Fife qualify for unemployment benefits because of their drug and alcohol addictions.

Paying them benefits costs at least £131,738 every single week or almost £7 million a year.

The Courier calculated the figures using the lowest benefit rates so the true figure is likely to be much higher.

A total of 1,870 people in Fife, Angus, Dundee and Perth and Kinross have been receiving unemployment benefits because their addictions are so debilitating they are classed as medically unfit for work.

Hundreds more received Disability Living Allowance payments because of their habits and some may even be entitled to other forms of support, such as concessionary travel, because their addictions are classed as a disability.

Across Scotland, there are more than 10,000 people receiving unemployment benefits because of their addiction to alcohol or drugs.

South of Scotland Labour MSP Graeme Pearson, a former chief executive of the Scottish Crime and Drugs Enforcement Agency, said the system may be enabling the problem.

He said: ”Drug addiction can attract disability payments and that seems off that you could involve yourself in alcohol or drug abuse and get benefits.”Follow our special investigation all this week in The Courier