A leading Queensland civil libertarian has poured cold water on a warning that pill testing could be a legal liability minefield. Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers has entered the pill testing debate saying pill testers could be charged if a person dies from a drug that had been given the OK by a tester. […]

“We’ve been getting calls from promoters all around the country wanting us to do pill testing, there’s been a change in momentum,” Mr Vumbaca said. “They do a hell of a lot of work in maintaining patron safety and protecting the health of patrons. While program like ours is not a silver bullet, it’s part of a suite of measures…

In the absence of a better system, most of us just turn to past experiences and word of mouth as a safety net, which is exactly why we need pill-testing. Pill-testing isn’t going to save the man chewing his face off taking eight caps on a 35 degree day. But it will save the guy just having one because all…

This week on The Drum on ABC TV, I asked advocate for drug reform, Alex Wodak, if he thought the political will would ever come for pill testing at music festivals. He replied: “Harm reduction debates almost always end up with harm reduction winning in the end, but it’s often a big struggle to get there.” […]

Working in healthcare I know the tragic consequences recreational drugs can have. We have a collective moral responsibility to protect people from this, but we are failing. Our young people are being killed with increasing frequency, but we refuse to change policy. They say stupidity is doing the same thing and expecting different results – are we displaying our stupidity,…

“The benefits of pill testing go beyond being able to determine what the chemical make-up of a drug is and providing this level of information,” Ms Lucas said. “When a person has their drug tested at a pill testing tent, they are actively engaged with a health professional to talk about their drug use.” […]

“There is no evidence to show that pill testing encourages drug use, and people who have a substance tested often elect to throw it away when they find out what it really is,” he said. “Drug use has been part of human culture for thousands of years. Pill testing won’t change that, but it will make drug use much more…

‘The war on drugs hasn’t worked in the past 20 years, so it’s time to change to a more compassionate and restorative approach,’ Mr Nash told Stuff. ‘If someone is dealing they will be taken through the justice system. But if it was someone who has one or two pills, you don’t want them to get a criminal record for a bad…

The Age believes, cautiously, that a trial of pill testing at public events involving chiefly young people has merit. We have argued that the debate should be led by evidence rather than simple ideology. On this basis, a well-regulated trial makes sense. […]