The New South Wales Government has finally given the green light to a 12-month pill testing trial at music festivals, set to kick off in early 2025. After years of campaigning by harm reduction advocates, the government has decided to take the plunge and give festival-goers a chance to check their gear before they party.
Premier Chris Minns didn’t mince words when he announced the trial. “No parent wants to be given the news that something has happened to their child at a music festival, and that they are now in an emergency department or worse,” he said.
“The trial has a clear purpose – to reduce harm and save lives.”
Health Minister Ryan Park has said that they came to the decision following the Government’s Drug Summit which ended in early December. “With music festival season upon us, I asked the co-chairs to provide interim advice to government ahead of their final report from the summit due early next year,” he said in a statement.
“Based on this advice, which reflects the diverse range of views of experts, frontline workers and people with lived experience, we will embark on a limited trial of pill testing based at music festivals.”
So, how’s it going to work? Festival-goers will be able to take a small sample of their drugs to a health professional, who’ll test it for purity, potency, and any nasty surprises that might be lurking in there. The best part? It’s going to be free and anonymous. The government says that it will cost NSW taxpayers just over a million dollars.
The government’s been quick to point out that this isn’t a free pass to go wild. Police Minister Yasmin Catley made it crystal clear in statement, “Make no mistake – illicit drugs are illegal and harmful. Police will not change their approach to drug suppliers at these trial sites. Anyone attempting to supply drugs can expect to be targeted by a police operation and brought before the courts.”
This move puts NSW in line with other states that have already dipped their toes in the pill testing waters. Queensland’s been leading the charge with two permanent pill testing clinics since March, while Canberra’s had one up and running since 2022 and Victoria legalised pill testing in October.
It’s been a long time coming for NSW, especially after the heartbreaking deaths of two young men at a music festival last October.
However, not everyone is happy about the announcement. Drug Free Australia has come out swinging, condemning the move as being against “every bit of existing science and common sense”. They reckon it’s a waste of public money and could even lead to more deaths.
Gary Christian, Drug Free Australia’s President, points to a medical journal study of 392 autopsies where MDMA was the cause of death. He argues that pill testing doesn’t address the real causes of these deaths, like allergic reactions, mixing drugs, or accidents while intoxicated. The organisation is worried that the trial might give festival-goers a false sense of security.
Despite these concerns, supporters of the trial are hopeful it’ll make a difference. Minister Park has been pretty upfront about the whole thing, saying it’s not going to solve all our problems overnight.
“We don’t think this is a silver bullet and we reiterate we don’t think this is going to solve every harm that drugs can cause,” he said.
While this is a massive step forward for harm reduction in NSW, it has not been confirmed that police won’t be stationed outside the pill testing sites, which could deter people from using this life saving service.
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