In the latest blow for both drug testing and Spilt Milk festival, the Canberra government has said that it is too late for them to organise off-site pill testing for the festival.
The Canberra Times report that ACT Health Minister Meegan Fitzharris said didn’t have enough time to sort out the logistics of setting it up.
“Unfortunately, there is not enough time for the government to examine all of these challenges and work through the logistics of establishing an off-site service in time for Spilt Milk later this month,” she said.
STA-SAFE, the group behind the successful pill-testing trial at Groovin The Moo earlier this year and the one that put this idea forward, remain hopeful that just because this time didn’t work out, there’s still opportunities for it to work in the future.
“These sort of tactics are really based in a sort of 1980s approach to drug-related harm and have nothing to do with the science or actually trying to reduce harm, and it’s been a really good thing that the territory government have had the moxie to actually trial this,” STA-SAFE spokesman Dr David Caldicott said, speaking of the concern he has about the federal government’s influence over this decision.
“We’re obviously disappointed, but not particularly surprised it’s taken a little longer to consider as what we offered had to be a different situation, we were forced to apply off-site because of the intransigence of the federal government.”
This is just the latest blow for Spilt Milk to suffer, after losing their headliner, Childish Gambino, after he cancelled his Australian tour due to a foot injury. It’s not all bad, though – the festival promptly announced Angus & Julia Stone and Golden Features as replacements.
