Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on drug-related fatalities of drug safety testing at (a) festivals, (b) nightclubs and (c) other large gatherings of young people.

Drugs are illegal where there is scientific and medical evidence that they are harmful to health and society. The possession of any amount of a controlled drug is a criminal offence and the supply of a controlled drug is an even more serious offence. No illegal drug-taking can be assumed to be safe and there is no safe way to take them.

The Government’s approach remains clear: we must prevent illicit drug use in our communities and help those dependent on drugs to recover, while ensuring our drug laws are enforced. In relation to drug testing at festivals, chief constables are responsible for operational decisions in their local area and we are not standing in their way. We are exploring with the National Police Chiefs’ Council whether their advice on this issue needs to be clarified.