People in Torbay urged to learn about anti-overdose drug
The scheme by the Torbay Recovery Initiative and Torbay Council is part of an campaign to reduce drug-related deaths. Naloxone can help restore the breathing of those experiencing opioid overdoses while they wait for emergency services to arrive. Ms Tranter said she wanted training to use Naloxone to be an "extension of first aid".
'Reverse the effects'
Sgt Neil Powers, from Devon and Cornwall Police, said officers were equipped with nasal naloxone in their first aid kits and vehicles and all were "comfortable in the application" of it.Jenny Whelband, the clinical team lead for Torbay Recovery Initiatives, said anyone administering the drug should not be worried about potentially hurting someone.She said: "If you accidentally give them all five doses in one go, it's not the end of the world."She added that if the person had "not overdosed on opioids", it would not make their symptoms worse, "it just won't do anything.""If they are unconscious from another substance, or perhaps it's alcohol they've had but they are on methadone, for instance, it will reverse the effects and it still could bring them round," she said.
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Glasgow Times
a day ago
- Glasgow Times
'Astonishing' sum spent on needle bins in Glasgow revealed
Research by the Scottish Conservatives revealed that the Glasgow City Alcohol and Drugs Partnership (ADP) purchased 'public sharps bins' for the Calton area. They cost the partnership - a multi-agency group including the council, police and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde - £2,500 per bin, according to a freedom of information request. In June, Glasgow City Council took to social media to respond to local concerns about a "public injecting site". The authority said it had cleared the site on derelict land in Calton and removed discarded needles safely. The Thistle, the UK's first drug consumption room giving those struggling with addiction a safe place to inject drugs, opened in the east of Glasgow in January. READ NEXT: 3 suspects accused of murder of man in Glasgow 20 years ago READ NEXT: Glasgow man stealing from cars spat and told cops he had HIV It has supervised 3,600 injecting episodes since it opened as well as tackling around 40 medical emergencies, which can include administering Naloxone - an emergency overdose reversal drug - or even resuscitation. The bins, costing the partnership £5,000 for the Calton area where the safe consumption room is based, were installed in response to local concerns. However, there are more bins across the city centre. It comes as our sister title The Herald previously revealed a number of significant complaints relating to abandoned needles and syringes in the vicinity of The Thistle site, on Glasgow's Hunter Street, since the safe drug consumption room opened in January. Annie Wells, drugs spokeswoman for the Scottish Tories, said: "Local residents will be shocked to hear the SNP-led council shelled out £5,000 on these two needle bins. "Despite the astonishing sum spent, they are doing little to help those living near The Thistle, who are having to put themselves in harms way to pick up dirty needles. In response to local concerns we have been clearing a public injecting site on derelict land in Calton. Discarded needles safely removed and disposed of, overgrowth cut back and other waste lifted. Needle bins also installed at sites where we know public injecting takes place. — Glasgow City Council (@GlasgowCC) June 6, 2025 "We repeatedly warned that the SNP shouldn't have pinned their hopes on state-sponsored drug taking, at huge cost to our overstretched NHS, as the answer to Scotland's drug deaths crisis, but in typical nationalist fashion they ploughed ahead regardless. "Scotland already has the highest drug fatality rate in Europe and since The Thistle opened, suspected fatalities are rising. This project isn't helping those with addiction and is making the local community and no-go zone. "It's just common sense that the focus needs to shift from facilitating drug-taking to treating addiction. "John Swinney needs to get off the fence and back the Right to Recovery Bill, which would enshrine in law a right to treatment and a potential game-changer in reducing Scotland's drug deaths toll." A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said: 'We know discarded needles cause concern and it has been a long-standing issue in Calton and surrounding areas. 'The installation of two bins followed a successful pilot initiative in the city centre and money was made available by the Alcohol and Drug Partnership for additional bins in other areas. 'Evaluation of the pilot indicated high usage rates, favourable feedback from local businesses, and a positive impact on the local environment. 'The Thistle service has now seen over 3,600 injecting episodes which has diverted the needles used away from the community. 'A safer environment has also been provided for users that reduces harm and the need for emergency responses. 'We want local residents to report issues with discarded needles so the needles can be removed safely and disposed of appropriately. 'Our staff are working in Calton every day and we can respond promptly to any reports we receive.' There had been 175 complaints relating to drug paraphernalia on the streets within a one-mile radius of the drug consumption room between January and May 20, 2025. The number of suspected drug deaths between March and May of this year increased by 15% compared to the previous 13 weeks, according to public data released earlier this month. Meanwhile, the Sunday Mail reported that heroin dealers caught selling the lethal drug have been let off with fines of less than £500, despite 1,065 deaths last year. Between 2022 and 2023, 1,489 people were in Scotland were convicted of drug dealing, however official figures also showed that less than a third of those convicted with dealing offences received a jail sentence. Around 800 people received community service while more than 200 were fined. The average fine for dealing heroin was £499 in 2022-23, while cannabis was £485, £503 for ecstasy and £719 for cocaine. The Scottish Government said it takes the issue of drug dealing "very seriously", adding it was "determined to tackle drug harms". A spokesman added: 'Sentencing in individual cases is a matter for the independent courts, taking into account all the facts and circumstances before them.'
The Herald Scotland
2 days ago
- The Herald Scotland
'Astonishing' sum spent on needle bins in Glasgow revealed
They cost the partnership - a multi-agency group including the council, police and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde - £2,500 per bin, according to a freedom of information request. In June, Glasgow City Council took to social media to respond to local concerns about a "public injecting site". The authority said it had cleared the site on derelict land in Calton and removed discarded needles safely. The Thistle, the UK's first drug consumption room giving those struggling with addiction a safe place to inject drugs, opened in the east of Glasgow in January. Read more: It has supervised 3,600 injecting episodes since it opened as well as tackling around 40 medical emergencies, which can include administering Naloxone - an emergency overdose reversal drug - or even resuscitation. The bins, costing the partnership £5,000 for the Calton area where the safe consumption room is based, were installed in response to local concerns. However, there are more bins across the city centre. It comes as The Herald previously revealed a number of significant complaints relating to abandoned needles and syringes in the vicinity of The Thistle site, on Glasgow's Hunter Street, since the safe drug consumption room opened in January. Annie Wells, drugs spokeswoman for the Scottish Tories, said: "Local residents will be shocked to hear the SNP-led council shelled out £5,000 on these two needle bins. "Despite the astonishing sum spent, they are doing little to help those living near The Thistle, who are having to put themselves in harms way to pick up dirty needles. In response to local concerns we have been clearing a public injecting site on derelict land in Calton. Discarded needles safely removed and disposed of, overgrowth cut back and other waste lifted. Needle bins also installed at sites where we know public injecting takes place. — Glasgow City Council (@GlasgowCC) June 6, 2025 "We repeatedly warned that the SNP shouldn't have pinned their hopes on state-sponsored drug taking, at huge cost to our overstretched NHS, as the answer to Scotland's drug deaths crisis, but in typical nationalist fashion they ploughed ahead regardless. "Scotland already has the highest drug fatality rate in Europe and since The Thistle opened, suspected fatalities are rising. This project isn't helping those with addiction and is making the local community and no-go zone. "It's just common sense that the focus needs to shift from facilitating drug-taking to treating addiction. "John Swinney needs to get off the fence and back the Right to Recovery Bill, which would enshrine in law a right to treatment and a potential game-changer in reducing Scotland's drug deaths toll." A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said: 'We know discarded needles cause concern and it has been a long-standing issue in Calton and surrounding areas. 'The installation of two bins followed a successful pilot initiative in the city centre and money was made available by the Alcohol and Drug Partnership for additional bins in other areas. 'Evaluation of the pilot indicated high usage rates, favourable feedback from local businesses, and a positive impact on the local environment. 'The Thistle service has now seen over 3,600 injecting episodes which has diverted the needles used away from the community. 'A safer environment has also been provided for users that reduces harm and the need for emergency responses. 'We want local residents to report issues with discarded needles so the needles can be removed safely and disposed of appropriately. 'Our staff are working in Calton every day and we can respond promptly to any reports we receive.' The Herald recently revealed there had been 175 complaints relating to drug paraphernalia on the streets within a one-mile radius of the drug consumption room between January and May 20, 2025. Read more: The number of suspected drug deaths between March and May of this year increased by 15% compared to the previous 13 weeks, according to public data released earlier this month. Meanwhile, the Sunday Mail reported that heroin dealers caught selling the lethal drug have been let off with fines of less than £500, despite 1,065 deaths last year. Between 2022 and 2023, 1,489 people were in Scotland were convicted of drug dealing, however official figures also showed that less than a third of those convicted with dealing offences received a jail sentence. Around 800 people received community service while more than 200 were fined. The average fine for dealing heroin was £499 in 2022-23, while cannabis was £485, £503 for ecstasy and £719 for cocaine. The Scottish Government said it takes the issue of drug dealing "very seriously", adding it was "determined to tackle drug harms". A spokesman added: 'Sentencing in individual cases is a matter for the independent courts, taking into account all the facts and circumstances before them.'
STV News
02-08-2025
- STV News
I won't ever sit back and declare ‘job done', says drugs minister
Drugs minister Maree Todd has said she will never 'sit back, relax and say 'job done'' in the fight against drug deaths. Todd was appointed to the role in June following the death of Christina McKelvie earlier this year from secondary breast cancer. Despite the circumstances of the appointment, the former mental health pharmacist said she was 'excited' to move from the social care brief to drugs as the Government continues its push to tackle the level of addiction and death across Scotland. The minister inherits a legacy which has been long-criticised by opponents, with Scotland having the highest drug death rates in Europe – a figure which actually increased between 2022 and 2023 in the latest available confirmed data. Just this week, figures showed the number of suspected drug deaths between March and May of this year increased by 15% compared to the previous 13 weeks. Speaking to the PA news agency, the minister said there is a 'consensus' that 'the work we are doing is the right kind of work', but the Government is responding to a 'changing landscape'. When the Government launched its national mission on drugs under the premiership of Nicola Sturgeon, the focus was largely on opioids such as heroin. But that has shifted, reflecting an increase in the injection of cocaine and the spectre of synthetic opioids known as nitazenes. On the latter, the minister said: 'They are unbelievably potent, super-strong, very tiny amounts can cause fatal overdoses easily.' As it looks to deal with the shifting threat posed by drugs, she stressed the need for the Government to be 'agile'. Todd said: 'We've just had our rapid action drug alerts and response (Radar) statistics released this week and we've seen a rise in deaths, a rise in Naloxone use, a rise in hospital admissions. 'We are seeing some absolutely significant and tangible harm occurring because of the change in the drug supply. 'I suppose the lesson that provides to me is that we need to be agile. 'I don't think we do one thing and this job is done and we fixed the problem that Scotland faces, we have to continually look carefully at what's happening in Scotland, understand the challenges that we're facing, understand the harms that people are experiencing.' She added: 'I don't think I would ever sit back and relax and say 'job done'. 'I think we've seen some significant progress, but each of these deaths is an absolute tragedy – it's a family who's lost a loved one, it's a loss of potential and contribution to our communities.' The way forward, she said , is a job for the whole of Government, saying there is a need for 'primary prevention'. The minister said: 'We need to be thinking, why is it that Scotland faces this challenge and what can we do to shift the likelihood that people growing up in Scotland will turn to drugs and alcohol as they grow older?' Earlier this year, the Thistle Centre opened in the east end of Glasgow, a UK-first safe consumption room giving those struggling with addiction a safe place to inject drugs. Since opening, the facility has supervised 3,008 injecting episodes and dealt with 39 medical emergencies, which could include administering Naloxone or even resuscitation. 'People would definitely have died if they had not been in that unit,' Ms Todd said. 'I think in March, there was a cluster of very profound overdose episodes, I think this is the issue with nitazenes, they act very fast, so people were really unwell really quickly and it takes a lot of Naloxone because of its potency.' In other parts of Scotland without the benefit of a safe consumption room where that specific batch of drug was used, the minister said: 'Where people used it, they did die.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
