Permanent Pill Testing In NSW Music Festivals

New South Wales has spent years defending an enforcement-first approach to drugs at music festivals: leading with sniffer dogs, increased police presence, and harsh penalties. Importantly, pill testing was repeatedly dismissed as sending the wrong message.

However, on 2 September 2026, the Government has taken an unorthodox step. The Minns Government announced that drug checking, better known as pill testing, will become a permanent part of the NSW festival season. From October, a free and anonymous service will operate at up to 15 festivals each year, backed by $4.3 million in funding and delivered in part by NUAA, the peer organisation formerly known as the NSW Users and AIDS Association.