Thanks to stewartb for alerting us to this:

From the National Police Chiefs Council (for England & Wales and with Police Scotland in attendance):

the above graph makes clear the hard evidence that four major police forces in England have the evidence of a significant flow of drugs into Scotland by criminal groups in their areas. Notably, the reported presence of these gangs in 50 locations, from Thurso to Aberdeen and down to East Ayrshire, is not mapped in detail. There are 6 544 County Lines across the UK so around 650 in Scotland.

Contrary to the hopes and messaging of most Scottish media, this confirms that much of Scotland’s drug problems are at root a consequence of the activities of gangs based in English cities surging in the last 6 to 8 years.

It is then a legitimate question to ask, has the decline in drug deaths in Scotland been obstructed by this activity.

Remember, that this flow of drugs is not like legitimate trade but is driven by extreme violence at a level not familiar to Scotland.

From the report, this statement conforms that all of these gangs originate in England and that they bring with them ‘greater levels of violence.’

According to the report, 3 out of every 4 offenders were linked to the use of weapons. In one month, 96 firearms and 466 knives were seized. There were 467 sexual offences.

This next statement reinforces the evidence that Scotland, along with some parts of England and Wales, only import and that their police forces are amongst the most ‘impacted.’ I’m sure you can imagine yourself just what ‘impact’ might mean.

Source:

^{https://www.npcc.police.uk/SysSiteAssets/media/downloads/publications/publications-log/national-crime-coordination-committee/2025/county-lines-strategic-threat-risk-assessment-fy-2024-25.pdf}