DRINKERS FACE DRUG TEST AS THEY ENTER THE PUB

Pub and club revellers face a drugs test as soon as they enter the
premises. Anyone going into a bar, whether they arouse suspicion or
not, will be asked to take a swab test, which highlights any drug use.

The scheme is being run by police in south Staffordshire and will
initially cover the towns of Cannock and Stafford.

Police have warned that anyone refusing will automatically arouse
suspicion and have told establishments that do not co-operate that it
will be held against them when their licences come up for renewal.

Liberty, the civil rights pressure group, said it was "deeply worried"
and accused the police of operating "by coercion rather than by consent".

Chief Supt Nick Lowe, division commander, said: "The beauty of it is
that it is so quick. It will allow us to test hundreds of people in a
very, very short amount of time. A swab will be placed on the hand and
will show up green, amber or red, depending on if there are drugs in
the person's system.

"If it shows red, which means definite contact with drugs, the police
can intimate their powers under the Misuse of Drugs Act to stop and
search the person, and then arrest them if necessary.

"If it is green or amber no action will be taken. If someone refuses,
then it is a tick in the first box of suspicion. Police officers are
present and it may be that further questions will be asked."

The equipment used is a UKP40,000 computer the size of a briefcase,
funded by the Communities against Drugs Fund. A swab on the back of
the hand, which is then fed into the computer, will test for ecstasy,
cannabis, heroin, cocaine, amphetamines and also rohipnol, the
so-called date rape drug.

The test with results takes about eight seconds and does not provide
officers with a DNA sample. The swabs are thrown away
immediately.

Mr Lowe said: "We have clear evidence that a large volume of crime is
drugs-related, whether it be for violence, vehicle crime or
anti-social behaviour.

"The tests appeal to the general majority of the public who want to
use drug-free premises. Most people are happy to do it."

Because there is only one computer, the police will also be operating
with dummy ones in other premises.

Gareth Crossman, a Liberty spokesman, said: "This is an extremely
questionable use of police powers. The police cannot force someone who
is not under arrest to take a drug test but they are implying they
can.

"To then use a perfectly legitimate refusal to comply as part of the
justification for suspicion is an abuse of policing powers."