Today’s Public Health Scotland RADAR report reveals that nearly half of Scottish samples submitted to WEDINOS between December 2025 and February 2026 did not solely contain the substance people believed they had purchased.
This underscores the urgent need for drug checking here in Scotland. Not just in Glasgow and Dundee, where plans are already underway to open services – but right across the country.
Drug checking services can identify the presence of highly potent synthetics, such as nitazenes, which may be added to other drugs without the knowledge of the person using them, or sold as something entirely different. Detecting these substances not only helps prevent avoidable harm and deaths, but also provides vital intelligence to inform public health responses.
At its core, drug checking is about respect. It recognises people’s right to know what they are taking and supports safer, more informed decisions about their health.
Today, our thoughts are with the families, friends and communities of all those who have died. These deaths are not inevitable. We urge the next government to show courage, follow the evidence, and work collaboratively – across government portfolios, with the third sector and alongside the people most affected – to deliver the bold, sustained, transformational change that Scotland urgently needs.
You can read the full RADAR report here.