Why has it taken so long to address county lines dealing in Scotland?

IREFER to the the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR)’s research report “Safe Space? The Past And Present Of Violence Reduction In Scotland” on the call for immediate efforts to create safe spaces in the community and online. With regards to illicit drugs, young people and technology/social media – which has become a major focus in Scotland, especially in relation to “county lines” – can we go back down memory lane?

Did you know that at the same time knife crime was arising in Glasgow, young vendors were being recruited locally and transported from various parts of the UK into Aberdeen to deal with illicit drug business (one-toone selling and shifting gear about) for criminal groups, mainly for the

West Midland gangs? It was called the “Aberdeen run”. County lines are important – it’s horrific, but we know there is a forerunner to this, and a long history of criminal harm and young people involved in the illicit drug economy in north-east Scotland. It doesn’t necessarily mean a new phenomenon of exploitation has suddenly appeared out of the blue just because of mobile phones (mobile technology and drugs started 10 years ago). Police, child protection officers and substance misuse support workers know this. Yet, despite the outrage and upset that people now feel about county lines, it was barely discussed or properly acknowledged at a national level in Scotland when it needed to have been.

For far too many years, north-east Scotland has experienced an identity crisis. It was assumed that due to the region’s different dynamics (such as a hard-hitting Class A drug market and outside predators coming in), the region was not representative of the types of situations facing Glasgow – even though there was an obvious need to start discussing public health, organised crime and young people. There has always been a need to branch out into local areas in Scotland. When Peterhead and Fraserburgh in Aberdeenshire were hit with outer criminal drug markets in the 1990s, that didn’t register at a national level in Scotland in a timely fashion either. It’s unlikely that those who are part of Scotland’s violence reduction efforts did not know this at the time. Everyone knew, so can you blame people for asking: “Why the upset and discussion now and not earlier?”

It seems to be a trend in Scotland that if you are based in the central nelt, you have the leading voice and can make things happen. The fixed spotlight on Glasgow became more evident when I watched two Glasgow-based researchers give evidence on youth violence, safety and belonging at the Scottish Parliament. Both had to respond promptly to MSP Jackson Carlaw’s comment: “No, no this is not just a Glasgow issue”. Can you see the problem? It shouldn’t be the case that violence and protecting young people is only ever seen as a Glasgow issue. I have not seen these researchers face any hostility for making a valid point to ensure we take real care in how we represent “the picture” and that we don’t end up minoritising other communities in Scotland.

Marginalisation and minoritisation are both forms of social trauma. Making it clear that Scottish violence reduction efforts are a Scotland-wide effort and must be backed up with earlier regional community engagement – rather than everything being in done in haste now – would have instilled more belief rather than the catch-up taking place right now … because, geographically, these people feel that they are symbolic of being last on the list. And who can blame them?

Harm-reduction ideas and projects with people who have been affected by organised crime, including young people, never saw the light of day for funding. People in this region were once inspired by what Glasgow had created and had hoped to offer the same to counteract the trauma and harshness of the area. Local people had good-quality ideas in areas where county lines drug dealers were a major issue – these projects were evidence-based and ticked every public health and violence-reduction box you can think of. Funding these projects would have been the beginning of building what has been described in the SCCJR’s new report. It would have shown there is a democratised commitment to providing opportunities beyond the central belt. The lack of opportunity available is scandalous and a real stain on equality, diversity and inclusion in Scotland.

It’s crucial to set the right conditions for deep and collaborative work at the start. We are not able to do that. Some damage has been created, it’s not all done and dusted, but there needs to be significant changes going forward – and that needs to start with honouring inclusion and community development beyond the central nelt.