Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has announced that pill testing will commence in the state this summer.
It will makethe third Australian jurisdiction to conduct pill testing, following similar trials in the ACT and Queensland.
The Victorian pill testing trial will run for 18 months, with a plan for it to become permanent.
Pill testing in Victoria
The Victorianwill consist of mobile and fixed testing sites.
Mobile drug-checking services will be at “up to 10” music festivals and events during summer, while a fixed site will open in Melbourne’s inner city in the middle of next year.
The centres will be able to check the composition of “most pills, capsules, powders, crystals, or liquids”. They will also be able to identify potentially fatal chemicals.
How will pill testing work?
While illicit drug possession will remain a criminal offence when the pill testing trial begins, people will be able to submit pills for testing without facing penalties.
Those using pill testing centres will be told what is in the drug and will be able to have a conversation with an expert about the “consequences and choices they face”. The Government says no one will be told a drug is safe to consume.
The Government hopes that as well as reducing drug harm, the trial will reduce pressure on frontline services.
Victoria drug overdoses
The announcement follows a recent surge in drug-related hospitalisations and deaths in Victoria.
Paramedics also responded to more festival overdoses in the first three months of this year than they did all of last year.
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Premier Jacinta Allan said this year’s ”horror festival season” was a key influence in commissioning the pill testing trial.
Premier’s view
Allan dismissed suggestions that pill testing would encourage young people to consume drugs, saying it would instead offer an “opportunity to have an intervention” about the contents of a potentially dangerous substance.
“If [pill testing] has the potential to save just one life, then it’s absolutely been worth it.”
Allan said her view on pill testing had changed in recent years as she contemplated the safety processes available for her own children at music festivals and other events.
Opposition response
The Victorian Liberal-National Coalition opposed the pill testing announcement, with Opposition Leader John Pesutto saying it gives a “green light” to illicit drug use and “lays out a welcome mat” for drug dealers at music festivals.
Pesutto called for more awareness about the dangers of drugs, and raised concerns pill testing could send misleading messages about drug safety.
The Opposition said they won’t continue with pill testing if they win the 2026 election.
Other centres
Australia’s first fixed pill testing centre was opened in Canberra about two years ago. It was initially operating under a one-year trial, but has been funded until the end of 2024 after initial success.
In Queensland, pill testing was first offered at a music festival in April, while its first fixed centre opened later that month.
Queensland’s fixed centre tested 51 samples in its first month, with MDMA, LSD, ketamine and cocaine all commonly detected at the site.
