Victoria's Premier, Jacinta Allan, has reversed her previous stance on pill testing and promised that the state will provide a trial run.
In case you missed it: Before the Melbourne leg of Juicy Fest in January, Victoria Police revealed that the event would see a more significant police presence as they ramped up drug-busting efforts to curb punters taking in illicit substances.
“Victoria Police will not tolerate any behaviour that compromises the public’s safety and will also have an increased presence at a music festival this week in Flemington on 12 January,” a police spokeswoman said before the festival (9 January), per The Age.
“Police want people to have a good time, and attendees should watch out for their mates to ensure everyone has a safe festival experience, and for anyone intending to take illicit drugs, we simply say, ‘Don’t do it.’”
Allan said at the time, “If people are concerned about substances, don’t consume it. There’s a personal responsibility here as well.
“That’s the way to stay out of hospital, that’s how to stay out of the intensive care ward, is to not take substances in the first place.”
This week, Allan revealed that the Victorian government is considering implementing a trial run of pill testing in conjunction with the ACT and Queensland.
According to a new report in The Age, Allan has proposed a year-long trial period to help avoid the “unimaginable” horror of young people dying during festival season this summer.
The Age reports that the trial will likely include mobile teams at music festivals that will test substances brought in by punters, testing for potency and contaminants. The proposal was set to be taken to cabinet yesterday (17 June) with the support of Allan.
Addressing the nine people who were rushed to hospital after overdosing at Hardmission Festival in January, as well as the two women who were taken to hospital after suspected drug use at Juicy Fest, Allan said:
“That is a horror to imagine as a parent – the horror of your son or daughter, going off with friends to have a good time to go to a festival and then to not come home … just unimaginable.
“Particularly, what we saw after the recent spike over the summer this year, the spike in the number of overdoses and particularly with some of the types of drugs that were circulating around festivals.”
Allan added, “That’s why, as both a parent and premier, my focus is always on looking at ways that we can support young people to be safe and to protect young people, and that is why we’ve got some advice coming from the Department of Health.”
In April, Queensland’s Rabbits Eat Lettuce festival organiser Eric Lamir said the use of pill testing at this year’s event resulted in “potentially lives saved, straight up.”
