Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Trading Standards Service recently seized a substantial quantity of clothing in a joint anti-counterfeiting operation with Police Scotland. The case has now been through the courts and, on sentencing the offender, the Sheriff gave an instruction for the clothing to be disposed of.
Rather than waste them, the Trading Standards staff have given their time and removed the offending fake branding from the garments. To date they have removed fake logos from over 70 winter coats and jackets. The team suggested to our Council’s Anti-Poverty officer that they would like to see them being given to local vulnerable people throughout our region, who could not afford to buy their own, therefore achieving a positive outcome from this operation.
Our Anti-Poverty Officer will now be in touch with Third Sector organisations across Dumfries and Galloway. Further seasonal clothing will be distributed in the coming months.
Chair of Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Economy, Environment and Infrastructure Committee, Archie Dryburgh met with the Trading Standards team to see for himself, he said: “We know that these jackets will be invaluable to people in poverty during this winter and I am very pleased that the confiscated clothing is being put to good use, rather than destroyed. We know we will be oversubscribed by requests, but hopefully we will be able to provide further allocations once the garments are sorted. Well done to the Trading Standards team for achieving such a positive result.”
