23 days ago · Scotland
New powerful synthetic opioid behind sharp rise in Scottish drugs deaths
What's happening
SignalsMonitor is following this as a markets story. The Guardian UK is the outlet attached so far. The reports are tied to Scotland. The first report grouped here was at 23 Sept 2026, 13:12 UTC. 3 material updates are listed in the timeline. The headline in use is “New powerful synthetic opioid behind sharp rise in Scottish drugs deaths”. This note is SignalsMonitor's own briefing, not the publisher's article.
What we know
Eleven per cent increase in fatalities last year partly down to presence of nitazenes in Scotland’s illicit drug market New forms of a powerful synthetic opioid have contributed to a sharp rise in Scottish drug deaths, with the latest data showing an 11% increase in fatalities last year
Story timeline
Reports grouped into this story, earliest first. Exact repeats from the same outlet are collapsed.
- First reported by The Guardian UK
New powerful synthetic opioids behind sharp rise in Scottish drug deaths
- Picked up by The Guardian UK
New powerful synthetic opioids behind sharp rise in Scottish drugs deaths
- Picked up by The Guardian UK
New powerful synthetic opioid behind sharp rise in Scottish drugs deaths
Reported by 1 outlet
- The Guardian