Fatboy Slim and a cross-party group of MPs have condemned the Home Office’s decision to effectively block onsite drug testing at festivals this summer as “shortsighted and dangerous”.
In a letter to Suella Braverman, the DJ, alongside musicians Billy Bragg and Olugbenga Adelekan of Metronomy has called for the government to allow the resumption of tests of confiscated pills in tents and temporary buildings at festival sites.
The letter, which is signed by 31 MPs including three Tories, came after the Guardian revealed that the Home Office told organisers of the Parklife festival in Manchester this month that for the first time since 2014 they would not be be able to check for dangerous drugs without a special licence.
Home Office officials said the requirement for a licence wasn’t new and any tests on site without a licence would not comply with drug laws, even though the confiscated substances are held by police and security officers who take them to the onsite laboratories for testing before they are removed.
The development has deeply concerned those running the UK’s largest festivals, who warn attenders and the emergency services about possible casualties of dangerous batches.
The letter, co-ordinated by the Labour MP Sam Tarry, asks Braverman to reverse the decision in time for festivals this summer that have previously used onsite testing including Reading, the Secret Garden Party and Creamfields.
“As you will know, since 2014 festival organisers have tested drugs, confiscated by the police or security, in a cabin on site. If these tests show that the drugs are a serious threat to health, push notifications are sent to festivalgoers, warning them that the drug is dangerous and should not be taken. This service undoubtably saves lives, by helping drug users make better informed choices and significantly reduces the risk of overdoses,” the letter said.
It added that the Home Office was advocating that festivals should seek special licences “which can take more than three months to arrange, at significant cost. Furthermore, for these tests to be conducted, government legislation requires them to take place inside permanent buildings, despite these festivals taking place on temporary sites. This makes it impossible for organisers to plan a festival harm reduction policy,” the letter said.
“Regardless of your position or personal beliefs on drug usage, the simple fact remains that people will take them, and especially so at festivals this summer. The decision to prevent this testing from going ahead is short-sighted and dangerous. With Glastonbury this week and other festivals such as Boardmasters, Boom Town, Secret Garden Party, Creamfields and Reading fast approaching, we urge you to reconsider this decision and allow this vital testing to continue,” the letter said.
Other signatories include the Conservatives Adam Holloway, Crispin Blunt and the former culture minister Caroline Dinenage as well as the former Labour culture secretary Ben Bradshaw and MPs from the SNP, the Lib Dems and Plaid Cymru.
Tarry, the Ilford South MP, said: “To effectively ban drug testing services at these events removes a critical safety net that allows festival organisers to warn revellers and the emergency services about dangerous substances.”
Fatboy Slim, the musician and DJ whose real name is Norman Cook, has previously supported onsite tests of drugs. He played at Glastonbury on Saturday.
At Glastonbury, it is understood that organisers use an off-site testing agency.
Sacha Lord, the founder of Parklife, said festival organisers were considering a judicial review of the requirement for onsite licences.
The Home Office in 2021 said it supported back-of-house testing. “The government will continue to support back-of-house testing on [seized] substances as this can provide useful intelligence and enable festival organisers and other partners to implement harm reduction measures,” an official statement said in a reply to a select committee report.
A Home Office spokesperson said the government will enforce drug laws. “Our position hasn’t changed. Drug testing providers must have a licence to test for controlled drugs, including at festivals.
“We have consistently made this condition clear, and law enforcement have always had a responsibility to uphold this legal requirement.
“We continue to keep an open dialogue with any potential applicants. Festivals aiming to test drugs off their site this summer must work with the police and a Home Office licensed drug testing provider.”
• This article was amended on 27 June 2023 to further clarify the Home Office position, as already quoted later in the article, that the requirement for a licence is not new, and to refer to the stipulation as “effectively” a block on festival testing.
