Revoking Fabric's license is a disgrace says Sam Bowman

Following the news that Fabric has had its license revoked and will be forced to close, Sam Bowman made the following comment:

The decision by Islington Council to revoke Fabric’s license is a disgrace, and exactly the wrong way to reduce deaths from drugs. Closing Fabric won’t stop people from taking drugs at other clubs, even if they step up their searches of clubbers. Heavy-handed drugs searches are security theatre: they make non-clubbers feel happy, but realistically people will always be able to take drugs into clubs – there’s only so much security can do.

The objective should be to reduce harm to drug users, and the way to do that is to let them know what they’re using. That means testing drugs that are circulating in clubs and warning drug users if potentially dangerous batches are around – a scheme that has been piloted by some clubs in the past, and was tried successfully at the Secret Garden Party festival this summer. Acknowledging that people will take drugs, but doing what we can to keep them safe while they do so, is how we can avoid drug deaths.

Sam's comments featured in the Guardian and Mirror Online.

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