Nursery staff near Scotland's controversial drug fix room ‘checking sandpits for used needles'
'WE ARE LAB RATS' Nursery staff near Scotland's controversial drug fix room 'checking sandpits for used needles'
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NURSERY staff near Scotland's controversial drugs fix room are being forced to sift through sandpits for discarded needles, a campaigner claimed.
Colin McGowan, 70, told of their daily checks for used syringes 'buried' in play areas close to the Thistle centre in Calton, Glasgow.
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Residents are concerned about the rise in drug paraphernalia in the community
Credit: Steve Welsh
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The community meeting heard how needles were being discovered by local nurseries
Credit: Steve Welsh
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Annemarie Ward spoke to residents about the concerns of recovery budget spending
Credit: Steve Welsh
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Charity boss Colin McGowen picked up 50 needles in one minutes on his way to the meeting
Credit: Steve Welsh
The worried grandad also brandished a tub filled with 50 needles found in a minute-long search of bushes and pavements in the shadow of the £2.3million-a-year consumption room.
It opened in January to allow users a place to inject safely under supervision, in a bid to tackle rising drugs deaths.
But Mr McGowan told a meeting residents have been left feeling like 'lab rats' amid claims of rising substance misuse in the streets around the centre.
Locals say dealers have been 'rattling their doors' while users have been found lurking in closes.
And Mr McGowan — whose Blameless charity raises awareness of alcohol and substance abuse — said: 'I hope the facility saves addicts' lives but don't call them 'safe consumption rooms'.
'They're attracting more users and dealers. I don't want it where my grandkids live. There's always been visible drug use in Calton, but not at this level.
'It's a duty of care for two nurseries to check sand where kids play because addicts are burying needles there.'
Councillor George Redmond confirmed some centres have requested removal of needles in the last 'five to six weeks'.
Residents demanded John Swinney act during the gathering at the district's St Luke's venue on Monday.
Activists brandished a banner reading: 'First Minister, you best listen! Our children deserve better.'
Speakers included addiction charity chief Annemarie Ward of Favor UK.
Locals say they have been left too scared to let children play outside.
One resident said: 'There's open drug dealing. All I see is police and ambulances scraping bodies up.'
Another said: 'We've had drug users in our closes and dealers rattling our doors. It's terrifying.'
But Allan Casey, a councillor who helped set up the drugs hub, rejected the claims as 'more disinformation'.
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McGowen claims nurseries in the local area are now factoring in checking for needles
Credit: Steve Welsh
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Local community members are calling for John Swinney to step in
Credit: Steve Welsh
He said on X there was 'no evidence' of a rise in needle use, adding: 'Over 2,000 injections have been taken off the streets. The service has been accessed just under 3,000 times and the team have reversed more than 30 overdoses.
'There is public injecting in the Calton and other locations, as has been the case for decades. To suggest this is a new phenomenon caused by the Thistle is just gaslighting.'
Glasgow City Council said: 'If someone reports a needle we will have it removed.
'We are working on a plan to address discarded needles in the Calton area."
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