That’s the Express headline above. BBC Scotland‘s website has no coverage, concentrating on whether police officers can be bearded but in the BBC Breakfast insert this morning they did say ‘County Lines‘ for the first time.
That’s progress I suppose.
The Express also has:
Separately, six groups involved in county lines drugs and organised crime in Aberdeen have been targeted by police since June in a joint operation with the Met Police in London.
Class A drugs, including crack cocaine and heroin, were being moved between London, Liverpool and Hertfordshire to addresses in Aberdeen, prompting 63 arrests in connection with drug offences, after 38 warrants were issued between September and November.
In London, officers from Police Scotland and the Met arrested a 34-year-old woman and two men, aged 39 and 68. Drugs with an estimated street value of more than £207,000, and a significant sum of cash were seized. https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/scottish-news/county-lines-crackdown-after-cops-34258612
Try replacing, in the above text, London with Glasgow, Liverpool with Dundee and Hertfordshire with Lanarkshire, and imagine the MSM response. It’s easy.
Imagine Nigel Farage on Question Time, ranting against the Scots and calling for border restrictions.
Imagine Scottish Labour blaming the SNP for these gangs.
Also, today, here’s what the National Police Chief’s Council has to say:
Policing continues to disrupt and dismantle County Lines networks across England and Wales. However, County Lines drug dealing continues to be linked with the most serious violence, demonstrated through the horrific weapons seized across the week, where we saw 557 weapons seized, which included 75 firearms, 377 bladed weapons, 105 other weapons like knuckledusters, nun chucks and hammers.
“This is why we continue to focus on a prevention-first approach to tackling County Lines, with over 1,400 people safeguarded during the week, of which 48% were children. Stopping people being drawn in, whilst working to prepare communities for the impact of County Lines is vital. Protecting children and vulnerable adults, safeguarding them from harm, along with relentlessly pursuing offenders remains one of our key priorities. https://news.npcc.police.uk/releases/over-500-weapons-seized-and-1-400-vulnerable-people-safeguarded-during-crackdown-of-county-line-drug-dealers
The word ‘Scotland’ does not appear in the above because there are no drug gangs like this based in Scotland.
Police Scotland‘s News site, strangely in the light of the media coverage, has no mention of a campaign in which their officers are heavily involved, across Scotland.
https://www.scotland.police.uk/what-s-happening/news/
Earlier this week BBC Scotland did report on raids on ‘a new organised crime group’ but seemed unable to name them and have not yet done so.
Watch the full Reporting Scotland coverage later today and see if they can bring themselves to mention where these gangs come from.
They could get the BBC Scotland Disclosure Team on this but I guess they’re too busy with the shortage of Pan Drops in care homes and the Scottish Government’s failure to ensure a steady supply.
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
“This is why we continue to focus on a prevention-first approach to tackling County Lines, with over 1,400 people safeguarded during the week, of which 48% were children. Stopping people being drawn in, whilst working to prepare communities for the impact of County Lines is vital. Protecting children and vulnerable adults, safeguarding them from harm, along with relentlessly pursuing offenders remains one of our key priorities“
The Police in this single paragraph identified what is possibly the most heinous if not criminal failure of the media in general and public broadcasters in particular to inform the public in Scotland of the dangers these gangs represent to communities across Scotland’s mainland and islands. There can be no forgiveness for those failures, they cannot justify putting their own political dogma before the safety of the people of this country. It highlights, if nothing else, who and what they represent.
Golfnut
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Scottish Gov funding proper rehab £250million over 5 years. More young people going for help earlier. More information about rehabilitation. Instead of prison. £40,000 a year. Too many neurodiverse people in prison without proper support. The UK has the highest prison population in the EU. The UK the most unequal place.
Scottish Gov funding nurture/nature practitioners and counsellors in schools. More young people (neurodiverse) getting into work. More apprenticeships.
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Drug dealers from the South have been targeting Scotland for years. Peterhead etc. More intervention and drug rehabilitation. Proper total abstinence rehabilitation facilities. More proper rehabilitation centres in borders and Dundee. More being established. Less deaths will occur. More places available.
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Aye, had read HMS James Cook’s ” Police dawn raids target new organised crime group ” by David Cowan about 4 days back and was astonished by the excruciatingly awful construction of the article… Talk about tiptoeing around the bleeding obvious…. “I must not mention English, a city in England, County Lines…”.
I find it hard to believe PS requested BBC Scotland to do this, clearly El-Suito thinks we’re all thick as mince….
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