CLUBS URGED TO PREVENT DRUG DEATHS

Nightclub owners are being urged to clamp down on drug dealing and help
reduce drug-related deaths if they want to keep their licences.

The Home Office is launching a Safer Clubbing guide on Thursday, giving
clubs tips on how to prevent dealing and cut the risk of casualties.

The guide accepts some clubbers will inevitably use drugs, and urges owners
to take safety precautions such as providing adequate drinking water and
having a quiet first aid room.

BBC home affairs correspondent Daniel Sandford says that in future, a club
or dance promoter seeking a licence will need to meet the conditions set
out in the guide.

Of the estimated four million people who go clubbing in the UK every week,
a significant number use drugs like ecstasy, amphetamines and cocaine.

The guide points out that campaigns in clubs to persuade people not to use
drugs are likely to be ineffective.

The latest government figures suggest that up to 220,000 young people in
England aged between 16 and 19 take Class A drugs such as cocaine, heroin
and ecstasy.

Backing

They show that 36 people died after taking ecstasy in 2000.

Ecstasy deaths can be caused by taking contaminated drugs, or because of
overheating or dehydration.

High profile cases have included Leah Betts, who died on her 18th birthday
after taking ecstasy in 1995, and Lorna Spinks, 19, who died after taking
two ecstasy pills before visiting a nightclub in May last year.

Lorna's parents are backing the campaign launch on Thursday.

In order to help reduce the possibility of drug deaths, the government
guidelines recommend clubs take action to prevent drugs getting on to the
premises by:

- -hiring police-approved staff to prevent gangs using door supervisors as
dealers -carrying out searches of clubbers -using metal detectors to search
for weapons -ensuring door staff regularly patrol the venue.

To reduce the likelihood of drug-related deaths occurring, the guide
emphasises that licensing authorities need to ensure clubs:

- -provide adequate supplies of drinking water -prevent overcrowding -ensure
proper air conditioning and ventilation.