By Judith Phillips, Reporter
NORTH Wales Police has invested in a sophisticated piece of equipment which can detect whether or not people have been in contact with controlled drugs like heroin or cocaine and used it for the first time last weekend at Llandudno's Broadway Boulevard nightclub.
It seems 170 people there for a relaxed night out agreed to be tested by allowing officers to take swabs from the palm of their hands which were then fed into the machine for a reading.
Of those tested, 45 were told the test showed slight traces of drugs on their hands which could have come from them being in contact with contaminated door handles, glasses, or paper money. However, three tests showed higher levels of drug contamination and those people agreed to allow police to search them, but no illegal substances were found, and there were no arrests.
The operation provoked quite a heated debate in the Weekly News office with the oldest member of staff (me!) arguing that it was a perfectly reasonable one to undertake in an effort to stamp out drug taking or pushing in pubs and clubs which may lead to anti-social behaviour. But my younger colleagues (none of whom are drug users!) felt it was a serious infringement of civil liberties which smacks of a nanny state trying to control the lives of individuals.
Their view is borne out by human rights group Privacy International which expressed shock at a policy which they said they wouldn't be surprised to find operating in countries like Russia and China, but has no place in the UK.
In France they have just introduced routine breathalyser testing for people leaving late night premises in the hope of cutting down on the rising number of fatalities caused by drink driving - so why shouldn't the same apply to people who take drugs which can also impair reaction times?
So what do you think, dear readers? Am I an old dinosaur with her head buried in the sand for believing there is a place for random drug testing to try to help eradicate this scourge? Or are my colleagues in the right, and it is a blow to human rights?
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