For the very first time, festival-goers in New South Wales will be allowed to test their own gear in 2025.
As part of a state-wide trial, the Minns Labor Government will kick off a 12-month pill testing trial at music festivals starting next year — without sniffer dogs at your groin or a heavy-handed police presence.
“Illicit drugs remain illegal in NSW,” reads a statement from the NSW Government, noting the “risks involved when consuming these substances and this announcement is not an endorsement of illicit drug use.”
However, the message continues, the trial “will help people make safer choices, will ensure they can speak to a health professional and it could save lives.”
Advocates for pill testing are calling this move a milestone, a significant shift towards harm reduction and safety at shows.
The Australian Festival Association is a vocal supporter of pill testing, and has worked closely with authorities on this breakthrough.
“Today marks a huge shift in the approach of the State Government to music festivals in NSW,” comments AFA Managing Director Mitch Wilson.
Love Live Music?
Get the latest Live Music news, features, updates and giveaways straight to your inbox Learn more
“This trial is a testament to what can be achieved through persistence, collaboration, and a shared commitment to safety. I look forward to working closely with the NSW Government and health experts to ensure the trial’s success and its expansion in the future.”
Here’s how it works: party animals can present a “small sample” of substances they intend to consume to qualified health staff, who will then test the tabs for purity, potency and adulterants.
Anyone checking their stuff will remain anonymous and they’ll received amnesty from law enforcement, provided the drugs are for personal use.
The initiative will cost just over $1 million to roll out to festival sites, but will be free for punters.
It’s a sharp left turn from previous successive Liberal leaderships, in particular the Berejiklian-led government, which took a hardline approach, The Music Network reports.
It was the former premier Gladys Berejiklian who, following a spate of drug-related deaths at open-air events, instigated a strict licensing regime for music festivals.
That tough – and expensive – set of rules came into force in early March 2019 and was blamed for a succession of festival collapses, including Psyfari and Mountain Sounds.
Organisers at the time said they were unfairly targeted, and lumped with unreasonable costs that would force their events to run at a slim margin, at best. Or bankrupt the show, at worst.
While NSW is the first to test the waters on a statewide basis, other states and territories have welcomed smaller-scale pill tests.
Just last month, Beyond the Valley announced it would be the first festival in Victoria to enable punters to test drugs on site.
Before that, Queensland’s Rabbit Eats Lettuce festival ran its own trial during its Easter long weekend show.
Talk on pill testing finally became action when, in April 2018, the Groovin the Moo festival in the Australian Capital Territory became the first to test drugs. Producers of the show later confirmed two potentially deadly samples were identified and half the drugs tested were found to contain no psychoactive substances.
Read more on pill testing at NSW music festivals here.
