Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle incidents of drink spiking in night clubs.

The government and law enforcement have been engaging with the industry on this issue since last autumn. Steps taken to tackle spiking include:

• Meeting representatives of the night time industry to discuss good practice, sharing of good practice and any additional support required (per recommendation 5 of the Home Affairs Select Committee Report on spiking, #HC 508)

• Working with the local government association to provide information to the range of local licensing authorities throughout the country, including sharing best practice and the provision of more information on upcoming activity (for example during the festival season).

• Collaborating with partners to develop informational products including posters and other guidance documents that will help inform staff and customers in night time economy venues of the risks to victims, to raise awareness of the issue, and to share best practice.
• Working with Police force crime registrars to improve the collection and recording of data relating to spiking offence to better reflect the local picture throughout the country. The National Police Chiefs Council have also been monitoring the number of cases at a national level which has helped to inform policy making.

A full summary of the work carried out on spiking will be included in the statutory report due to be published 28 April 2023.