MPS demand 10-year jail sentences for drink spikers

DRINK and needle spiking should be met with a maximum sentence of 10 years in jail, say MPS, as they warned it would remain an “invisible crime” without urgent government action.

MPS on the all-party home affairs committee also called for all suspected victims of spiking to be tested for drugs, and clubs and pubs should be forced to tackle problems with spiking as part of their licence renewal.

The moves follow research that found one in nine women had been spiked but the MPS said it was difficult to know the true scale because of a culture of victim-blaming and many incidents going unreported.

The committee said a new criminal offence for spiking, which the Government is considering, would signal to attackers they faced severe penalties, encourage more victims to report and improve data collection.

The MPS said this should be coupled with a national campaign, encouraging victims to report attacks even if they had to do so anonymously and making it clear to perpetrators that spiking could lead to up to 10 years in jail.

There is no specific offence of drink or needle spiking which has to be prosecuted under other laws including the sex offences act.

The MPS who urged ministers to report back on progress said local authorities and licensing authorities needed to ensure that venues have adequate security and staff trained to identify spiking, it said.

Venues with a bad track record on spiking and wider issues relating to violence against women should have improvement measures required as part of their licence renewal.

The MPS said inadequate forensic testing capacity was another issue. They said the Government “should introduce a duty on all police forces to provide those who report any spiking incident with the rapid testing service introduced in response to the outbreak of needle spiking.”