Pill testing to be made permanent at up to 15 music festivals a year in NSW

The New South Wales government has announced that pill testing will resume at music festivals in the state from October. According to The Guardian Australia, up to 15 music festivals per year will be involved, with NSW Health consulting with the music festival industry and harm reduction organisations.

The decision does not include a wider rollout of pill testing into the community, despite calls from health and harm reduction groups. The use of sniffer dogs and searches will also continue, a move that some groups argue could lead to riskier drug taking.

The state government's announcement was made on Wednesday, with NSW Health set to work with the music festival industry and harm reduction organisations on the pill testing program.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Guardian Australia, The Guardian — 2 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.