Update on needle reports since Thistle drug centre opened
Reports remain high, but according to official data, they have reduced slightly in the almost six months since it opened its doors in January.
Figures previously published, showed that between the centre's opening to May 20, there had been 175 reports of needles or drug paraphernalia within a one-mile radius of the centre in Hunter Street.
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The numbers were released by the Scottish Conservatives earlier this week.
The Glasgow Times asked for data for the months before it opened to allow comparison.
The data showed there had been 187 reports in the previous five months, between August and December 2024.
Local people in Calton have been frustrated and angry at the dumping of needles since before the Thistle Centre opened.
Many have said there has been a rise since the facility opened and public meetings have been held calling for action.
The figures obtained by the Glasgow Times show a huge number of reports dating back to January 2023.
In two and a half years there have been 1134 reports of discarded needles.
The highest monthly total was 61 in August 2023.
The month before the Thistle centre opened the council received 26 complaints, the lowest in two years.
For the year 2023 there were 508 reports an average of 42 per month, which dropped to 451 in 2024, an average of 37.
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Since the centre opened, the total of 175 is an average of 35, similar to the period before but a reduction overall.
It is recognised that the actual figure is higher as there will be a lot going unreported.
Allan Casey, council convenor for addictions, said it has been a longstanding problem in area, which is why the centre was located there.
He said: 'Verbal reports from council officers had said there had been no increase in complaints, so we thought it had remained stable.
'The only indicator we can look at is the reporting.
'Hopefully, the Thistle is making a difference and a reduction in the community. That is the ambition.
'With the visibility of the Thistle, maybe people are noticing it more. There's clearly a feeling that it is increasing.
'We have tried to advertise as we want people to report where they see needles.
He added: 'There is probably under-reporting.'
The Glasgow Times reported this week how the council moved into clean up a site in Tobago Street, Calton, which was a known outdoor injecting site and was also subject to flytipping.
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