Drug gangs from Aylesbury and Liverpool exploiting children and vulnerable adults in Scotland plead guilty to Modern Day Slavery but our media concentrate on ‘Scotland’s Tony Soprano’

From Merseyside Police yesterday: Three people who exploited children to sell drugs as part of a county lines network have been sentenced today (Thursday 10 October). James O’Keefe, 23, of no fixed address, Kerry Russell, 39, of Titherington Way, Liverpool and Ruby O’Keefe, 19, of Colby Close, Liverpool were sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court today (Thursday 10 October). Officers from Merseyside’s Project Medusa, the initiative to tackle county lines drug dealing and child criminal exploitation across the country, began an investigation into James O’Keefe in November 2023. Despite being in prison for previous offences, detectives established that James O’Keefe was … Continue reading Drug gangs from Aylesbury and Liverpool exploiting children and vulnerable adults in Scotland plead guilty to Modern Day Slavery but our media concentrate on ‘Scotland’s Tony Soprano’

In which Scottish town did Buckinghamshire County Lines drug gang exploit a vulnerable woman – media silence on more than 300 cases

Only from Yahoo! News today: A 20-year-old man [above] has been jailed for over a year after ferrying class-A drugs between Aylesbury and Scotland and ‘cuckooing’ a vulnerable woman at her home. Tyrees Kuba-Ngoma, of Friarscroft Way in Aylesbury, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply crack cocaine and heroin at Aylesbury Crown Court last Tuesday, October 1. https://uk.news.yahoo.com/man-20-jailed-cuckooing-vulnerable-170642139.html Police Scotland estimate more than 300 homes in Scotland have vulnerable adults being cuckooed by English County Lines gangs. BBC Scotland have twice, in 2021 and 2024, referred to this practice but on neither occasion did they indicate the English city from … Continue reading In which Scottish town did Buckinghamshire County Lines drug gang exploit a vulnerable woman – media silence on more than 300 cases

Up to 80% of Scotland’s drug deaths were among those who became addicted before the SNP came to power, 93% of nearly 30 000 referrals per year are treated within 3 weeks and more than half within only 1 week!

From Public Health Scotland’s National drug related death database (Scotland)Analysis of Deaths Registered in 2019 and 2020, published today, it’s clear that Scotland’s drug deaths are to a very large extent a legacy of the Labour and Tory governments that ruled the UK and devolved Scotland for decades before the SNP came into power, with limited powers over drug use, in 2007. Treatment for these users has been, for years, top notch, with above the 90% target seen within three weeks or less: Between 1 April and 30 June 2024, 7,361 referrals to community-based services started treatment. Of these referrals, … Continue reading Up to 80% of Scotland’s drug deaths were among those who became addicted before the SNP came to power, 93% of nearly 30 000 referrals per year are treated within 3 weeks and more than half within only 1 week!

English newspaper looks 10 000 miles south to report opioid crisis in Australia but fails to notice a solution launched THIRTEEN years ago just 400 miles to the north

By Professor John Robertson OBA The Guardian today has: Australian demand for overdose drug naloxone more than doubles after spike in synthetic opioid deaths but no mention of Scotland in the report. Why might it have? This: Scotland was the first country in the world [2011] to introduce a national naloxone programme, empowering individuals, families, friends and communities to reverse an opiate overdose. https://www.gov.scot/policies/alcohol-and-drugs/naloxone-provision/#:~:text=Scotland%20was%20the%20first%20country,years%20from%202011%20to%202016. From Public Health Scotland in August 2021: Since the establishment of the National Naloxone Programme in 2011/12:• 74,629 THN kits have been issued by services based in the community.• 8,793 THN kits have been issued by prisons … Continue reading English newspaper looks 10 000 miles south to report opioid crisis in Australia but fails to notice a solution launched THIRTEEN years ago just 400 miles to the north

Will BBC Scotland start reporting ‘County Lines’ gangs after finding one ‘kind of’ Scottish guy involved?

Top row, second left, him! in the Northamptonshire Telegraph yesterday: Corby county lines drug gang member James Carroll convicted for part in crack cocaine and heroin trade in Corby and Kettering. A gang who ran drugs lines supplying heroin and cocaine have been convicted – with their ringleader being found guilty of exploiting children to operate his trade, helped by a man from Corby. James Carroll, aged 46, of Dumble Close, Corby was convicted of facilitating travel for a child for the purpose of exploitation. This is the AB drugs gang running drugs using child carriers as far north as … Continue reading Will BBC Scotland start reporting ‘County Lines’ gangs after finding one ‘kind of’ Scottish guy involved?

Unique SNP drug death prevention scheme reduces load on hospitals for 4th quarter in a row and down by one third in only one year

By Professor John Robertson Why is the above happening? In major part for this reason: After a pilot phase ending in 2018, the Scottish Government began to embed Naloxone opioid overdose reversal kits across NHS Scotland. Shortly after, the kits which can be administered by anyone, were adopted by Police Scotland, ambulances and prisons, and made available to libraries, community centres, taxi drivers and to the friends and relatives of users. Scotland was the first country in the world to introduce a national naloxone programme, empowering individuals, families, friends and communities to reverse an opiate overdose. Anyone in Scotland can … Continue reading Unique SNP drug death prevention scheme reduces load on hospitals for 4th quarter in a row and down by one third in only one year

Before they begin to rejoice that ‘suspected’ drug deaths are up, real drug deaths are plummeting

‘Suspected’ drug deaths based on police reports from crime scenes, with no blood tests, are up 7% on the previous quarter. Expect a joyous media flutter on this and the SNP to be accused of betrayal. The actual, real, drug deaths figures for 2023 will not be published until August 2024 but the trend is abundantly clear, above. Why are they falling? Westminster is ultimately responsible for Scotland’s drug deaths Drug deaths fall by 21% in only one year as SNP policies begin to reverse long-term effects of decades of Tory/New Labour neglect Evidence emerges that significant drug deaths fall … Continue reading Before they begin to rejoice that ‘suspected’ drug deaths are up, real drug deaths are plummeting

England follows Scotland’s world-leading life-saving overdose drug programme after three years of delay

By stewartb On the UK and Health pages of The BBC News website this morning (14 May): ‘Life-saving overdose drug to be given without prescription’. It’s about extending of availability in England of naloxone, the drug given in an emergency to those at risk of death from an opioid overdose. The same story featured in news bulletins throughout Radio 4’s Today programme. Much praise for the UK government in taking this decision! No mention of Scotland’s world first in making naloxone widely available for emergency use. The Scottish Programme reported on TuS: Scotland was the first country in the world to implement … Continue reading England follows Scotland’s world-leading life-saving overdose drug programme after three years of delay

Increased supply of SNP’s world-leading opioid overdose reversal kits saving lives and reducing hospital admissions

By Professor John Robertson From Public Health Scotland today: During 2023/24 Quarter 2 (1 July 2023 to 30 September 2023): At the end of 2023/24 Quarter 2, the ‘reach’ of the NNP (percentage of people at risk of opioid overdose who have been supplied with THN) was estimated to be 73.2%, an increase of 1.5 percentage points compared to 2023/24 Quarter 1 (71.7%). https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/publications/national-naloxone-programme-scotland-quarterly-monitoring-bulletin/national-naloxone-programme-scotland-quarterly-monitoring-bulletin-july-to-september-q2-202324/ This positive news on the use of the opioid overdose reversal drug Naloxone, a world-first for the Scottish Government, comes on top of previous, uncovered by the media, news on a massive fall in drug-related hospital admissions, … Continue reading Increased supply of SNP’s world-leading opioid overdose reversal kits saving lives and reducing hospital admissions

Scots drug gang are ‘Scots’ drug gangs but English drug gangs are never ‘English’ drug gangs

In the Daily Mail on 11 December 2023: Sophisticated Scottish cocaine-smuggling gang face jail  and in the Sun on 21 March 2024: I was groomed by a major Scots crime gang – I was at their mercy out of fears of being murdered In February 2024, the Mail reported: The Scottish Mail on Sunday can reveal at least 55 gangs have been identified operating north of the Border – more than double the number in 2020. County lines is the phenomenon whereby drug dealers from cities expand their operation by crossing county borders into smaller towns and rural areas. Gangs … Continue reading Scots drug gang are ‘Scots’ drug gangs but English drug gangs are never ‘English’ drug gangs