NSW government to resume pill testing at music festivals but rejects calls for wider community rollout

The ACT and Victoria have both moved beyond festivals to fund community drug checking, where staff provide people with the results along with non-judgmental health and harm reduction advice. Photograph: Jonny Weeks/The Guardian

Drug testing will resume at New South Wales music festivals from October, but will not be rolled out into the wider community despite calls from peak health and harm reduction groups, while the controversial use of sniffer dogs and searches will continue.

On Wednesday the state government announced NSW Health will consult with the music festival industry and harm reduction organisations to roll out pill testing at up to 15 music festivals each year.