Calls made for drugs dogs charity to receive public funding

Liberal Democrats Beatrice Wishart, Alistair Carmichael and Alex Cole-Hamilton visited Dogs Against Drugs. Photo: Dogs Against Drugs.

Politicians have made renewed calls for government cash to support the charity which helped seize more than £300,000 of illegal drugs last year.

Scottish Liberal Democrats leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said Dogs Against Drugs was a “real success story” which deserved public funding.

He said his meeting with the drugs dogs and their handlers had been the “highlight” of his visit to Shetland yesterday (Friday).

“This is Shetlanders helping themselves, dealing with a problem off their own back with no support from the government – and that needs to change.”

Orkney and Shetland MP Alistair Carmichael said Dogs Against Drugs deserved public funding to be taken from the proceeds of crime.

Currently, the charity is ineligible for such funding, which Mr Carmichael said needed to change.

“They don’t fit the criteria because the criteria were designed in Edinburgh by people who never thought about the idea of a community-based charity providing drugs dogs,” he said.

“You have something here which is unique and has made a massive difference to how Shetland has developed as a community.”

Over the past 20 years, Mr Carmichael said Dogs Against Drugs had made “spectacular” achievements helping to prevent Shetland from becoming “swamped by a growing hard drugs problem”.

During the visit drugs dog Oscar provided a demonstration, while the handlers and committee members highlighted their work keeping Shetland safe.

The charity’s Michael Coutts said: “One thing we also highlighted was our funding and how we are finding it hard to meet all out costs.”