Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle the issue of spiking in nightclubs, bars and pubs.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Reports of spiking, whether that is adding substances to drinks or injecting people with needles, are extremely concerning. We have every sympathy with victims and anyone who might feel unable to enjoy a night out without fear. No one should feel frightened or vulnerable when they go out. We utterly condemn the people who perpetrated those attacks, and they should be brought to justice. This is an issue that the Government takes very seriously.
The Home Secretary has already asked the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) to urgently review the extent and scale of the issue, and we are receiving regular updates from the police. The police are working locally, regionally and nationally, including with our partners in the National Crime Agency.
The NPCC has convened a group of policing leads, including Deputy Chief Constable (DCC) Jason Harwin, the lead on drugs, and DCC Maggie Blyth, the Government’s new lead on violence against women and girls, which is meeting regularly, with the aim of understanding the issue and ensuring that there is a strong police response.
My officials are working closely with NPCC leads and wider government to understand the scale of the issue and identify solutions to bring these offenders to justice. 11. There are a range of initiatives around the country that are already taking multi-agency action that we can seek to learn from. Several areas have introduced safe spaces – areas where a combination of medical assistance, supervised recovery and other support services is provided to intoxicated, injured or vulnerable individuals.
The abhorrent crimes of spiking also speak to broader issues of violence against women and girls. We published our new cross-Government tackling violence against women and girls strategy this summer, to help to ensure that women and girls are safe everywhere. We are delivering a pilot £5 million safety of women at night fund, focused on preventing violence against women and girls in public spaces at night, particularly in the night-time economy. That is in addition to the £25 million safer streets fund, which focuses on improving public safety, with an emphasis on the safety of women and girls, and their feelings of safety in public spaces.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to protect women from drink spiking in (a) bars and (b) other venues in England and Wales.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The reports of the spiking of drinks with illegal substances are of course concerning. This is an ongoing matter which the police are investigating.
The Government is supporting the rollout of pilot initiatives to improve the safety of women in public spaces at night, including in the night-time economy. We have committed to delivering a £5 million ‘Safety of Women at Night’ fund, in addition to the £25 million Safer Streets Fund Round 3. These funds will support projects that target potential perpetrators, seek to protect potential victims, or deliver programmes intended to address offending behaviour.
Licensing authorities have a number of options available to them to manage the night-time economy through a range of powers to tackle existing individual premises including the use of conditions, licence reviews and closure powers under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.
The police are working at pace to gather intelligence on these crimes and identify perpetrators. It is a changing and evolving picture. We have been gathering reports from forces across the country, and currently, we have 218 reports of needle assaults and injections since September. Over the same period, the police are aware of 250 incidents of drink spiking. Those numbers are subject to change as the police continue to gather information. This is a crime in which not all instances are reported. We strongly encourage anyone who has been a victim to report it to the police but it does mean that it is difficult to make comparisons with the past, and we will continue to strive to understand more about this crime.
The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) has convened to discuss this issue with the NCA and the NPCC has committed to report back on the needle issue specifically (rather than drink spiking), and the results will be published in due course.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of trends in the number of drink spiking incidents in England and Wales.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The reports of the spiking of drinks with illegal substances are of course concerning. This is an ongoing matter which the police are investigating.
The Government is supporting the rollout of pilot initiatives to improve the safety of women in public spaces at night, including in the night-time economy. We have committed to delivering a £5 million ‘Safety of Women at Night’ fund, in addition to the £25 million Safer Streets Fund Round 3. These funds will support projects that target potential perpetrators, seek to protect potential victims, or deliver programmes intended to address offending behaviour.
Licensing authorities have a number of options available to them to manage the night-time economy through a range of powers to tackle existing individual premises including the use of conditions, licence reviews and closure powers under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.
The police are working at pace to gather intelligence on these crimes and identify perpetrators. It is a changing and evolving picture. We have been gathering reports from forces across the country, and currently, we have 218 reports of needle assaults and injections since September. Over the same period, the police are aware of 250 incidents of drink spiking. Those numbers are subject to change as the police continue to gather information. This is a crime in which not all instances are reported. We strongly encourage anyone who has been a victim to report it to the police but it does mean that it is difficult to make comparisons with the past, and we will continue to strive to understand more about this crime.
The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) has convened to discuss this issue with the NCA and the NPCC has committed to report back on the needle issue specifically (rather than drink spiking), and the results will be published in due course.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to tackle drink spiking.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The reports of the spiking of drinks with illegal substances, and of other attacks on individuals in night time venues, are of course concerning. This is an ongoing matter which the police are investigating. We would encourage anyone who is a victim or a witness of the offences to report the information to the police.
The Government is supporting the rollout of pilot initiatives to improve the safety of women in public spaces at night, including in the night-time economy. We have committed to delivering a £5 million ‘Safety of Women at Night’ fund, in addition to the £25 million Safer Streets Fund Round 3. These funds will support projects that target potential perpetrators, seek to protect potential victims, or deliver programmes intended to address offending behaviour. This includes, but is not limited to, policing interventions such as enforcement activity.
Licensing authorities have a number of options available to them to manage the night-time economy through a range of powers to tackle existing individual premises which are causing problems including the use of conditions, licence reviews and closure powers under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.
The SIA is running a long-term public safety campaign targeted at the private security industry on this issue. The SIA has sent out a direct communication to all front-line licence holders (over 300,000) reminding them of the vital role they can play in preventing violence against women and girls. This includes identifying and preventing predatory behaviour. The note also reminds them of their training and duty of care required of them, and guidance on how to help and support individuals in vulnerable situations. The SIA will be running a social media campaign that reinforces these messages and signposts licence holders to best practice and guidance. We know this communication is getting traction from the industry feedback the SIA have been getting; they have also received early feedback from training providers who are looking at how they can support the campaign in their training.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of trends in the rate of (a) convictions and (b) arrests following allegations of drug spiking.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The recent reports of spiking of drinks and through injections are of course concerning. Data held by the Home Office on arrests by police in England and Wales are collected at offence group level only (such as ‘drug offences’ and ‘sexual offences’). Further details on the offence are not collected, so it is not possible with the data available to the Home Office to determine the rate of arrests following allegations of drug spiking.
Information on the number of convictions recorded for such offences is held by the Ministry of Justice.
This is an ongoing matter which the police are investigating, and the Home Secretary has asked police forces to provide an update.
The Government is supporting the rollout of pilot initiatives to improve the safety of women in public spaces at night, including in the night-time economy. We have committed to delivering a £5 million ‘Safety of Women at Night’ fund, in addition to the £25 million Safer Streets Fund Round 3. These funds will support projects that target potential perpetrators, seek to protect potential victims, or deliver programmes intended to address offending behaviour.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with representatives of the night-time economy on the reported increase in the number of incidences of spiking (a) women's drinks and (b) injections.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The reports of the spiking of drinks with illegal substances, and of other attacks on individuals in night time venues, are of course concerning. This is an ongoing matter which the police are investigating. We would encourage anyone who is a victim or a witness of the offences to report the information to the police. Information about spiking has been made available on the Government’s website for information about drugs, FRANK
Licensing authorities have a number of options available to them to manage the night-time economy through a range of powers to tackle existing individual premises which are causing problems including the use of conditions, licence reviews and closure powers under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to work with the night time economy to tackle spiking (a) by injection and (b) in drinks.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The reports of the spiking of drinks with illegal substances, and of other attacks on individuals in night time venues, are of course concerning. This is an ongoing matter which the police are investigating. We would encourage anyone who is a victim or a witness of the offences to report the information to the police. Information about spiking has been made available on the Government’s website for information about drugs, FRANK
Licensing authorities have a number of options available to them to manage the night-time economy through a range of powers to tackle existing individual premises which are causing problems including the use of conditions, licence reviews and closure powers under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to support universities and hospitals to tackle drug spiking by (a) injection or (b) drinks.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The reports of the spiking of drinks with illegal substances, and of other attacks on individuals in night time venues, are of course concerning. This is an ongoing matter which the police are investigating. We would encourage anyone who is a victim or a witness of the offences to report the information to the police. Information about spiking has been made available on the Government’s website for information about drugs, FRANK
Licensing authorities have a number of options available to them to manage the night-time economy through a range of powers to tackle existing individual premises which are causing problems including the use of conditions, licence reviews and closure powers under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle the spiking of women and girls' drinks' with illegal substances in nightclubs.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The reports of the spiking of drinks with illegal substances, and of other attacks on individuals in night time venues, are of course concerning. This is an ongoing matter which the police are investigating. The Home Secretary has asked the police for an urgent update on the issues reported, including what steps they are taking to prevent the offences and apprehend the perpetrators. We would encourage anyone who is a victim or a witness of the offences to report the information to the police.
The Government is supporting the rollout of pilot initiatives to improve the safety of women in public spaces at night, including in the night-time economy. We have committed to delivering a £5 million ‘Safety of Women at Night’ fund, in addition to the £25 million Safer Streets Fund Round 3. These funds will support projects that target potential perpetrators, seek to protect potential victims, or deliver programmes intended to address offending behaviour.
Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of drug safety testing facilities in city centres to prevent drug-related harm in the night-time economy.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
No recent assessment has been made of the potential merits or risks of drug testing facilities at festivals, events or in city centres.
No illicit drug can be assumed to be safe and there is no safe way to take illicit drugs. The possession, supply or production of a controlled drug without a licence - where one is needed - is a criminal offence. Tackling drug misuse requires a system wide approach, and a need to work closely with local partners.