From BBC Scotland today, the above, and:

The backlog of trials in Scotland’s highest criminal courts has nearly tripled, due in part to an increase in complex cases involving serious organised crime and historic sex abuse. At the end of March about 1,000 trials were waiting to go ahead in the high court, almost three times the number before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Where would that increase in serious organised crime come from? There’s absolutely no evidence that it originates anywhere in Scotland.

To what extent based on Police Scotland and other reliable sources has County Lines drug gang activity increased in Scotland from 2019 to the present?

Evidence of increase since 2019

In 2019, county lines was discussed mainly as an emerging threat in Scotland rather than a deeply embedded one. Since then, Police Scotland reporting has become much more operational and quantitative, indicating a larger enforcement burden and broader intelligence picture.

For example, during a 2023 UK-wide County Lines Intensification Week, Police Scotland:

• safeguarded 17 vulnerable people,
• engaged with 650 others,
• visited 373 suspected “cuckooing” addresses,
• arrested 25 people,
• and seized large quantities of cocaine, heroin, and crack cocaine. https://www.scotland.police.uk/what-s-happening/news/2023/october/police-scotland-acts-to-protect-young-people-from-county-lines-drug-dealers-during-week-of-activity/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

By 2025–26, the scale of operations described by Police Scotland had grown further. One 2026 enforcement campaign resulted in:

• 43 arrests,
• 58 search warrants,
• over £900,000 in drugs seized,
• and 38 vulnerable adults and children safeguarded. https://www.scotland.police.uk/what-s-happening/news/2026/march/over-900k-of-illegal-drugs-seized-and-38-children-and-vulnerable-adults-safeguarded-in-crackdown-on-county-lines-drug-operations/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

A separate 2025 intensification week reported:

• more than 100 vulnerable people safeguarded,
• nearly 2,800 people engaged with,
• over 40 suspected cuckooing addresses visited,
• and 42 arrests. https://www.scotland.police.uk/what-s-happening/news/2025/july/police-scotland-safeguards-vulnerable-people-during-intensification-week-targeting-county-lines-drug-dealers/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

That rise in safeguarding numbers alone — from 17 in 2023 to over 100 in 2025 operations — strongly suggests a growing operational footprint. However, some of this increase may also reflect better detection and recording rather than purely more offending.

A cautious overall estimate would therefore be: County lines activity in Scotland has probably increased by roughly 100–300% between 2019 and 2026,