The UK Government will not intervene to stop a pilot drug consumption room in Scotland, Alister Jack has said.

The Scottish Secretary said ministers at Holyrood now have "no more excuses" to act after he made the commitment in the House of Commons.

SNP MPs had pressed the Westminster Government to outline its position after Scotland's Lord Advocate paved the way for such a facility to be established.

READ NEXT:Drug deaths show upward trend for first half of this year

Dorothy Bain KC made clear that prosecuting the users of such a facility for simple drugs possession charges would "not be in the public interest".

Mr Jack told Scotland questions in the Commons: "Drug consumption rooms are not the easy solution that honourable members may think. There is no safe way to take illegal drugs.

"Drugs devastate lives, they ruin families, they damage communities, and the UK Government believes that the police and the procurator fiscal service should fully enforce the law.

"However, if the Scottish Government and Lord Advocate decide to proceed with a pilot on DCRs - drug consumption rooms - the UK Government will not intervene."

The Home Office has repeatedly refused requests to change the law on drug possession to allow a consumption room or overdose prevention centre to operate.

But with the Lord Advocate statement, the fear of prosecution under existing laws will be removed.

On Monday, First Minister Humza Yousaf stressed the need to "drive forward with a pilot with urgency" given Scotland's high drug death rate.

Glasgow's Health and Social Care Partnership is expected to bring forward plans in the next few weeks for a facility in the city.

New figures reported on Tuesday showed suspected drug deaths rose in the first six months of this year.

Statistics published by the Scottish Government showed there were 600 such fatalities over the period January to June - with this total 7% higher than the same time in 2022.