The UK government has ruled out any new legislation on various forms of spikes.
Despite the government considering the possibility of a new law last year, BBC reports that they consider it “unnecessary” to create a new law. Home Secretary Sarah Dines said there were already several crimes covering the spike incident and the government had found no “legal gaps”.
The government’s position was confirmed in a letter issued Wednesday to Labor MP Diana Johnson, chairman of the Home Affairs Committee. We are targeting all methods of spiking, including known morphologies,” Dines said. “Police have yet to come across a case in which pre-existing crimes could not be applied.”
She added that a particular spike crime does not increase the powers available to judges in such cases, nor the likelihood of prosecuting or prosecuting offenders.
But those who advocate tougher anti-spike laws say it would increase the number of victims reporting incidents to the police and make the police’s job easier by making more data available about spike incidents. It claims to help.
Several lawmakers have expressed disappointment with the decision. Diana Johnson argued that existing laws “are clearly not working” and are not being used. “Reports are low and prosecution rates are very rare,” she added.
Meanwhile, Labor’s shadow Home Secretary Sarah Jones urged the government to “call a spade a spade” and introduce more specific legislation, while Conservative MP Richard Graham called the government “a “I didn’t read it,” he said. Such an extraordinary letter during his thirteen years at the Commons”.
Michael Kill of the Night Time Industries Association said the organization was “extremely disappointed” with the findings of the investigation. However, evidence and data collected before October 2021 for crimes of sexual assault and robbery are very difficult to track and assess as many of these crimes are hidden. It turned out to be, especially since the period for gathering evidence and reporting is so short,” he said.
According to the National Police Chiefs’ Council, about 5,000 needle and drink spike incidents were reported to police in England and Wales in the 12 months to September 2022. His 90% of victims were offered no assistance after reporting a spike in cases.
The issue of drink spikes has become a much-discussed topic in late 2021, especially after reports of increased spikes due to needle use.
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