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Monday, 06 March 2006 10:38

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Boy, 2, died after drinking parents’ methadone

A two-year-old boy died after drinking his parents’ methadone, it emerged yesterday.

Derek Alexander Doran’s body was discovered in his bed at home in Elphinstone, East Lothian, by his 25-year-old mother.

The Sunday Mail newspaper reported that the child died after mistaking the sweet-tasting heroin substitute for a soft drink. It is unclear how he came into possession of the drug.

Derek’s parents, Lisa Dodds and Derek Doran, 22, are both methadone users and have been questioned by the police. Lothian and Borders police said they were investigating how the heroin substitute came to be in the child’s possession.

Derek died in December but the news of his death was revealed only this weekend. A police spokeswoman said: "The death was reported to the procurator fiscal, as all sudden deaths must be. We are working closely with our partner agencies to ensure a thorough investigation."

The Scottish first minister, Jack McConnell, told the Sunday Mail: "There is a police investigation ongoing so it would be wrong to comment on the specific circumstances until we know the full facts.

"However, over the last few weeks I have been absolutely clear on our commitment to do more to protect children, in particular those who are part of drug-abusing families."

Annabel Goldie, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, said the death highlighted the need for a change of government policy on drug rehabilitation and called on the Scottish executive to stop "parking" addicts on methadone.

"We're living in a country where drug abuse has been allowed to eat away like a cancer at the heart of our society. Drug and methadone dependency have reached epidemic proportions with our social services left to pick up the pieces of government policy that lacks the will to tackle the issue head on."

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