Minister of Family Affairs and Social Services Aki Lindén (SDP) said he does not believe that supervised drug consumption facilities are the answer to Finland's growing rate of drug-related deaths.
Lindén told Yle that although trialing such facilities could provide valuable information, it would likely require legislation to be prepared in a cooperation among several ministries.
This would also include clarifying the criminal law aspects of drug use, supply, and distribution, the minister added.
"This kind of legislative preparation takes time. Moreover, drug consumption facilities are not the solution to a serious drug problem. The focus should be on prevention, access to treatment and increased cooperation between authorities," Lindén said.
In the drug consumption facilities, drug users could consume illegal substances under the supervision of a health care worker. According to Yle's report in July, drug users in Finland would like to have such rooms made available. MPs familiar with substance abuse issues have also expressed mixed support for introducing such spaces.
In January this year, the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) announced that these types of facilities would be one of the recommended ways to reduce drug-related deaths.
In 2019, the introduction of legislation allowing the trial of drug consumption rooms was proposed by the City of Helsinki to the government. However, the issue did not progress at government level.
Drug-related deaths in Finland have increased
Minister for Social Affairs and Health Hanna Sarkkinen (Left) told Yle that the Left Alliance supports legalizing supervised drug consumption facilities.
"Such rooms are hoped to reduce the harms associated with drug use and drug-related deaths. Meanwhile, the harm caused to other people by the use of drugs in public places could be reduced," Sarkkinen said.
In Finland, drug-related deaths have increased throughout the 2000s. According to Statistics Finland, 258 people died in Finland due to drug-related causes in 2020.
Compared to the rest of the European Union as well as Norway and Turkey, Finland has the highest number of drug-related deaths among those under 25, according to the latest European Drug Report.