Watch This Anti-Pill Testing Commentator Accidentally Make The Case For Pill Testing

In the past 24 hours, there’s been yet another death at a music festival, plus 150 arrests for drug possession and supply at Field Day. Naturally, that meant Sunrise was debating pill testing this morning — and shockingly, they actually made a pretty good case for it, partly by accident.

That accident started when Sunrise host Monique Wright asked commentator Tim Webster what the answer to the crisis at music festivals is. “Look, I don’t know to be honest,” was his answer. “But pill testing isn’t.”

He then went on to inadvertently make a very good case for pill testing by pointing out that young people are always going to take drugs.

“Young people — and people just hate the idea of this — are going to take drugs. That’s a full stop and end of story.” And that pretty much sums up the argument for pill testing: people are going to take drugs, despite the heavy police presence, despite the recent drug-related deaths.

If you accept that, then the options become straightforward: either young people continue to take a gamble and assume the drugs they have are relatively safe, or we give them access to pill testing, which at the very least helps them avoid taking pills that are laced with dangerous substances they didn’t expect.

Australia’s first pill testing trial demonstrated that this works: after finding out what was actually in the pills they were planning on taking, 61 percent of participants said they were surprised by the results, and 18 percent indicated that they would either discard the drugs, or were uncertain of what to do. Pill testing doesn’t stop people taking drugs, but the evidence strongly suggests that it stops at least some people from taking some of the most dangerous pills. That could be lifesaving.

And incredibly, even shows like Sunrise seem to be coming around to the idea. Another one of the commentators on this morning’s program, Seven News reporter Nick McCallum, openly acknowledged that it’s time to trial pill testing, pointing out that the Australian Medical Association has recommended it.

McCallum predicted that we’ll be seeing pill testing at music festivals by the end of the year. “I don’t necessarily like that, but I’m realistic,” he said. “I think it is the only way — it’s not the total answer, no one’s saying it is the total answer, but it is something that needs to be tried because what we’re doing at the moment is, unfortunately, simply not working.”

Sunrise host Monique Wright agreed. “I’m actually with you on this one, Nick,” she said. “I think that we’ve got to trial pill testing, see how it goes”. And if Sunrise can acknowledge that, surely the government can’t be far behind.

You can watch the Sunrise debate below. If you want to show your support for pill testing, here’s how you can do it.

How can we prevent drug deaths at music festivals? ? pic.twitter.com/4glusfOAxd

— Sunrise (@sunriseon7) January 1, 2019