QR-code stickers advertising Class A drugs have been appearing on lamp posts and bus shelters around the city.
These codes have reportedly been directing people to an anonymous Telegram channel and an online website which advertises illegal drugs. The website also claims to offer next-day Royal Mail delivery.
Scottish Conservative MSP Miles Briggs has called for action by writing to the relevant authorities to facilitate the prevention of these stickers appearing. He wrote to both the Chief Executive of the City of Edinburgh Council and the Edinburgh Local Commander for Police Scotland.
The City of Edinburgh Council has confirmed that they will remove stickers found on council property.
Earlier this year, Edinburgh’s top police officer, Chief Superintendent David Robertson, expressed his concern regarding drug usage in the city. As of last month, Scotland continues to have the worst fatality rate in Europe for deaths related to illicit drugs.
Deaths related to illegal drugs rose by 11 per cent in 2025, reaching 1,133. Edinburgh itself recorded 100 deaths related to illegal drugs in the same year.
However, this is not a phenomenon specific to Edinburgh: in May 2025, a Sky News investigation found QR codes in Burton-on-Trent offering a wide range of cannabis products.
There have also been reports of such stickers appearing in various cities across the country such as Birmingham, Glasgow and London. Smaller towns have been affected too, including Shrewsbury, in Shropshire and Droitwich, in Worcestershire.
Photo by Lyubov Rogozina on Unsplash.
