Let festival-goers test quality of their drugs, say police
Campaigners warn backing for service that analyses illegal substances helps normalise their use
ANTI-DRUGS campaigners have expressed dismay after the police backed plans to allow festival-goers to test substances such as cocaine and ecstasy for purity before taking them.
The service, which will be offered at a string of live music events this summer, including the Reading and Leeds festivals, is intended to identify dangerous mixtures of drugs, so that users can make an informed choice.
Festival-goers will be able to take illegal drugs to a testing tent, where analysts from an organisation called The Loop will identify the ingredients, before destroying the sample.
The scheme is being rolled out in response to a number of recent drug-related deaths among young people at festivals. Last year, 17-year-old Lewis Haunch died after taking drugs at Leeds Festival, while in the same year two teenagers died at T In The Park in reportedly drug-related incidents.
Police leaders have said, while they do not condone the use of illegal drugs, they recognise that many young people use them and it is better if they are informed about what they are taking. It is understood that the National Police Chiefs’ Council is working on guidelines that will encourage forces to support schemes at festivals and nightclubs.
Anti-drug charities have questioned the wisdom of the approach and said the police should not condone the taking of potentially deadly narcotics.
David Raynes, of the National Drug Prevention Alliance, said: “I do not think senior police officers have thought this through with the clarity that the public deserve. This will simply normalise drug taking amongst the young and will reinforce the attitude that taking drugs is an integral part of the festival experience, which it is not.
“Another problem is that drug testing services offer an illusion of safety. They tell drug users about purity, but purity is not a measure of safety, quite the opposite in some cases. Drugs are illegal because they are unsafe and that is the message that the police ought to be giving.”
Asst Chief Constable Andy Battle, of West Yorkshire Police, who is in charge of policing at Leeds Festival, said officers would continue to target dealers, but it was important to take a pragmatic approach to festival-goers using drugs. He said: “We can never condone the use of illegal drugs, but we recognise that some people will continue to take them and we need to adapt our approach in the interests of public safety. Consuming controlled drugs is inherently dangerous and the tragic consequences of this have been illustrated with drugs-related deaths at the event in recent years.
“We will continue to work closely with the on-site security team to target the possession and supply of controlled drugs and the criminal law will be applied appropriately as necessary.”
In 2013, when she was home secretary, Theresa May dismissed a proposal to pre-test drugs at a nightclub in Manchester, arguing that “if somebody has purchased something that the state has deemed illegal, it’s not then for the state to go and test it for you”.
Commander Simon Bray of the National Police Chiefs’ Council said before officially endorsing such schemes forces needed to understand the implications, adding: “We could not support initiatives that do not comply with the law or that have unintended negative consequences.”