A SCOTS dad-of-two had his picnic in Edinburgh’s Meadows spoiled after discovering piles of needles in a busy local playpark.
Colin Macleod was visiting the capital city’s large public park on Sunday with his two young daughters, where they settled down for a family lunch.
However, Colin, from Currie, Midlothian was left with a bad taste in his mouth after stumbling upon what he described as a “drug den”.
Lying in some bushes adjacent to the Meadows’ playpark, Colin discovered dozens of used needles, just waiting to be found by an unwitting youngster.
Snaps taken by Colin – who has since shared his find with the city council – show piles of the paraphernalia lying under the bush.
The ground is rife with empty needle packets, small spoons, syringes and used needles scattered throughout the undergrowth just metres from the children’s play area.
Colin shared his find to social media on Sunday in a warning to other parents, writing: “I’ll report this to the council, but just to warn parents that there are loads of used needles right next to East Meadows playpark.”
His post received over 125 likes and more than 30 comments from appalled Edinburgh locals.
One user said: “I’ve called the council, and they have said they are going to contact the cleansing department.
“Hopefully it’ll be sorted soon, so scary this is next to a children’s playpark.”
Another wrote: “Please share this with all Edinburgh councillors.”
A third replied: “Thank you for posting this, my son found a plastic tub saying injection liquid and an elastic band last weekend near the tunnel off the park, we didn’t know where they got it so just threw it away.”
Another added: “There is an ongoing campaign for safer drug consumption facilities in Edinburgh. They work.
“One is planned to open in Glasgow next year. It has been part of the Communist Party’s council election and general election campaigns here in Edinburgh.”
A fifth commented: “Looks like a whole sharps bin. Very odd. Hope it gets cleared up quickly.”
Speaking today, Colin said: “I don’t go to the meadows much, I live out in Currie. I was there with my two young daughters for a family picnic on Sunday.
“I was shocked by what I found. It was like a drug den, there were needles everywhere.
“It was just a bit shocking and upsetting to think a kid could have gone in there and gotten hurt.
“It’s been flagged to the council. I find it hard to believe it wasn’t noticed before, it looks like it’s been there for quite a while.
“I understand people that use drugs aren’t well themselves, we might need to have safe consumption rooms.
“The main issue is, we want people to be aware and know what to do in a similar situation as well.”
