Caldicott is just one of numerous experts in fields from harm minimisation and drug reform to police and medicine who have said pill testing should be considered to reduce drug problems at music festivals. “There’s not really that many experts you can find anywhere in the world who thinks that this is a bad idea,” Caldicott said. […]

Reason Party leader and upper house MP Fiona Patten urged the government to look at the decades of evidence from overseas that showed pill testing reduced deaths and ambulance calls-outs. Dr Alex Wodak, president of the Australian Drug Law Reform Foundation, said families were suffering unnecessary pain and politicians weren’t taking responsibility for it. […]

The recent deaths have sparked a national debate around pill testing, with advocates renewing calls for the technology to be introduced in order to minimise risks. Since her son died, Ms Buccianti has been a fierce advocate of the measure, which she believes could have saved Daniel’s life. “My son would have never, ever wanted to come out of that…

The national campaign for drug law reform, ‘Take Control’, has pleaded with the NSW Premier to reconsider her stance. “As always, we must be respectful of the family and remember that every single life is precious,” Ted Noffs Foundation CEO Matt Noffs said. “We have doctors and drug treatment experts standing by to make live music and festivals safer for our…

Reason Party leader and upper house MP Fiona Patten urged the government to look at the decades of evidence from overseas that showed pill testing reduced deaths and ambulance calls-outs. It’s tragic and it’s immoral for politicians to look away and put their heads in the sand when young people are dying and they could stop it,” she said. […]

New South Wales Opposition Leader Michael Daley has said that the state Labor party would consider the possibility of testing recreational drugs at music festivals, after the death of 22-year-old Josh Tam following Lost Paradise this week. […]

Pill testing advocates reissued their push for a rethink following the Lost Paradise death, including the Take Control organisation, which was launched by drug and alcohol treatment provider the Ted Noffs Foundation. Spokesman Matt Noffs said the “just say no” strategy had failed and urged the Premier to listen to evidence about pill testing.  […]

The push for pill testing is being felt throughout the music industry after Canberra’s Groovin The Moo festival’s first on-site pill testing scheme was deemed a success by organisers. Despite this and despite being asked in an open letter signed by industry giants such as MusicNSW, Chugg Entertainment, Secret Sounds and more to consider pill testing it was not considered…

Following the ACT trial, Edith Cowan University researcher Stephen Bright said the state government needed to seriously consider a pill test trial in WA. “I think there are so many new substances entering the market … from the conversations I’ve had with people, with consumers here in Perth so far it appears that the market sort of varies and sometimes…

Of course, there is still much work to do. But in this reactionary time, advocates for sustainable and humane drug policies­, centered on harm reduction, human rights, and sustainable development, have joined together to provide a common defense and to continue building on the progress made to date. The Global Drug Policy Program has been honored to be a part…