NSW government’s drug summit response rejects medicinal cannabis defence for drivers for now

A recommendation to bring in a legal defence for drivers in New South Wales taking medically prescribed cannabis has been rejected for now.

The state government has released its response to last year’s drug summit, which made 56 recommendations including allowing medicinal cannabis patients to drive when unimpaired.

Health Minister Ryan Park said the government would accept 50 of the recommendations, but key proposals have not been supported.

The government said it was still looking into a medical defence for drivers prescribed cannabis and would consider advice from an expert working group due by the end of the year.

Police Minister Yasmin Catley said the matter was “extremely complex”.

“Our road toll is increasing and we want to make sure we put in place a process or a policy that will address those people who we know, use medicinal cannabis to assist them.”

A recommendation to allow more than one medically supervised injecting centre to operate in the state also went unsupported, the government deciding the single Kings Cross facility was sufficient.

Sniffer dogs, strip searches at festivals to stay

The government has also knocked back a recommendation to abolish the use of sniffer dogs and strip searches for suspected drug possession at music festivals.

Last month, the NSW Supreme Court made a landmark ruling involving the illegal strip search of Sydney woman Raya Meredith by NSW Police at the Splendour in the Grass Music Festival in 2018.

Ms Meredith was awarded $93,000 in compensation and aggravated damages for assault, battery and false imprisonment and for the way police had conducted the case.

Supreme Court Justice Dina Yehia found Ms Meredith, who was 27 at the time, had been subjected to “humiliating” treatment by NSW Police.

The case is part of a broader class action, extending to police strip searches at music festivals from 2016.

It was a significant loss for the state government and had increased pressure on it to ban strip searches and the use of sniffer dogs at music festivals.

Despite the case, Ms Catley defended the government’s decision not to ban the police practice at music festivals.

“The NSW Police have already apologised for that and accepted that that [unlawful strip search] was not correct.

“That matter is before the court and I think we should allow that matter to go the duration of the court and then we’ll obviously have something to say.”

Both NSW Police and the state government apologised to Ms Meredith for the unlawful strip after the ruling in September.