300 years in jail for English County Lines drug gang members who had ‘their eye on Scotland’ and who English media link to stubborn drug deaths statistics in Scotland, is NOT news in Scotland it seems – why?

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By Professor John Robertson OBA

My Google Alert today, offered Operation Apollo continues crackdown on County Lines with over 300 years in jail time secured [by the above members] from Cheshire Constabulary. There’s no mention of Scotland in it but it triggered a memory in me. This from 2022:

A series of raids across Scotland last week highlighted the continuing focus of Merseyside’s organised crime groups on the drugs market north of the border. Last week officers from Merseyside Police teamed up with Police Scotland for raids in Peterhead, Aberdeen and in Knowsley. On Wednesday, November 2, Police Scotland raided an address in Peterhead where cocaine and heroin were recovered and a man and woman arrested.

Debate has been raging north of the border over how to handle drug-related deaths, which have remained high for a number of years and show little sign of significantly reducing. Scotland still has the highest number of drug deaths in Europe. In 2021, 1,295 deaths were linked to illicit drugs in Scotland, albeit down from 1,411 in 2020 which represented the highest number on record.

Liverpool based street gangs do not appear to have been phased by the misery, death and addiction on the streets of Glasgow and other Scottish cities and towns, however. In 2018, a National Crime Agency (NCA) annual strategic assessment said: “Significant serious organised crime connections exist between Scotland and the north west of England, predominantly Merseyside.

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/liverpool-drugs-gangs-still-eye-25476347

Was any of that reported by BBC Scotland, STV? I can find nothing.

The Liverpool Echo is making a clear causal connection between Liverpool drug gangs, the flood of cheap, more powerful, drugs into Scotland and our still far too high drug deaths. Why are Scotland’s media ignoring that?

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6 thoughts on “300 years in jail for English County Lines drug gang members who had ‘their eye on Scotland’ and who English media link to stubborn drug deaths statistics in Scotland, is NOT news in Scotland it seems – why?”

  1. Not news in Scotland ?

    Why ?

    Well that’s because exposing the truth, all of the actual facts , all of the crucial and pertinent details and so all of the relevant information would then spoil the narrative that the media here choose, as in prefer, to promote.

    Which as a narrative, also known as propaganda, is that all things bad in Scotland are only happening because the SNP , as the Scottish government, are incompetent and so not worth voting for.

    Meanwhile elsewhere in the UK …………..

    Liz S

    Liked by 7 people

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  2. The Scottish Gov is funding proper, total abstinence, rehabs. £250Million over five years. The numbers will come down. More young people are going for help and treatment. Keeping more people well. NA and AA.

    MUP alcohol deaths have gone down.

    Liked by 4 people

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  4. ‘Debate has been raging north of the border over how to handle drug-related deaths, which have remained high for a number of years and show little sign of significantly reducing.’

    And it is right that there has been a debate! In England and Wales drug-related deaths are rising in many places – NE England most notably. Is there a ‘debate raging south of the border? There should be!

    Candidly, even stabilising the death rates – rather than having ongoing rising rates – in England and Wales would be a significant ‘good’. And has Scotland’s death rate not only stabilised or even dropped a little recently?

    The mainstream news media seem more interested in recycling the ‘worst rate in Europe’ story about Scotland and give much less attention to the growing problem in England and Wales.

    ‘Deaths from drug use in England and Wales have risen by 11%, according to the latest annual data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). In 2023, there were 5,448 fatalities (93 deaths per million people) – the highest number of drug-related deaths since records began in 1993.‘ (see https://theconversation.com/drug-related-deaths-have-risen-by-record-numbers-in-england-and-wales-latest-data-241180)

    From the ONS (October 23, 2024) Deaths related to drug poisoning in England and Wales: 2023 registrations – currently the latest data release:

    ‘In 2023, the highest rate of drug-poisoning deaths was observed in the North East (174.3 deaths per million; 441 registered deaths), which is three times higher than the lowest rate in London (58.1 deaths per million; 500 deaths). The North East has had the highest rate of drug-poisoning deaths for the past 11 years.

    In Wales, the rate of drug-poisoning deaths rose to 129.2 deaths per million from 109.6 deaths per million in 2022.‘

    (The ONS website provides definitions of drug-poisoning and drug misuse.)

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  5. Pingback: A first as BBC Scotland tell us where the drug gangs terrorising Scotland and keeping deaths high come from – not in the headline mind you – Talking-up Scotland
  6. Pingback: Scotland’s triple toxic relationship – Talking-up Scotland [Collective]

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