Drug swabs on members of the public
Freedom of information request reference no: 01.FOI.22.022578
I note you seek access to the following information:
Yesterday, the MPS twitter account posted a video of officers in Shoreditch conducting "drug swabs" on members of the public.
Under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act, 2000, could you please tell me:
1) Whether this is part of a wider policy across London? And if so:
2) How many such operations were run in 2021?
3) Are there guidelines on who should be stopped and swabbed? How are people selected?
Finally
4) Can you please provide me with data on who was stopped and swabbed, broken down by age and ethnicity?
I would like this data for
(i) The individual operation in Shoreditch in December and
(ii) All other operations, if there were any, for the whole of 2021
Decision
I have today decided to disclose the located information to you in full.
Please find below information pursuant to your request above.
Q1 - Whether this is part of a wider policy across London
It was part of an operation working across the night time economy areas of London.
Q2 - How many such operations were run in 2021?
Three operations have been run in 2021, including this operation. They took place in Bexleyheath, Haymarket in the West End and Shoreditch and have resumed after the reopening of licenced premises since the Lockdown.
Q3 - Are there guidelines on who should be stopped and swabbed? How are people selected?
As this was a condition of entry for two licensed premises working in partnership with the MPS, the only people swabbed were the ones wishing to enter these venues. Apart from driving related test, there is no use of drug swabbing other than as a condition of entry to a licenced venue.
Q4 - Can you please provide me with data on who was stopped and swabbed, broken down by age and ethnicity?
I would like this data for
(i) The individual operation in Shoreditch in December and
(ii) All other operations, if there were any, for the whole of 2021
The operation recorded the number of swabs taken, both positive and negative. No other information, such as age and ethnicity was not requested and not recorded.