Christopher BarrettGlastonbury Festival’s organisers may be required by Mendip District Council to sell less tickets for the event and/or change its drug seizure procedures under a review of the event’s license.
Addressing the licensing board at Mendip District Council, councillor Simon Carswell suggested Glastonbury should be required to release drug seizure figures as part of its licence. He also suggested that more drugs seizures would be made if security numbers at the festival were increased, or fewer tickets for it sold.
The festival’s license currently allows it to use a private company to make drug seizures, accept surrenders and test any substances found onsite without any requirement to report details to the police.
During the licensing board meeting at Mendip District Council, Somerset Constabulary drug expert Pete Collins said, “The festival uses the services of a licensed private company to carry out what they call back-of-house testing there. Believe it or not, but the seizure of drugs is not something that’s disclosed to us – the data is owned by the Glastonbury Festival.”
According to the BBC report, councillor Francis Hayden said he would like to see Glastonbury attendees given access to drugs testing before entering the event so that they can ensure they are safe, but Glastonbury Festival head of security Andy Battle reportedly suggested to the board in April that such an approach would not be effective.
The license is to be discussed at further meeting in February. Glastonbury was contacted for comment.