Prisons (Substance Testing) Act 2021

1 Testing prisoners for psychoactive substances and other substances

(1) Section 16A of the Prison Act 1952 (testing prisoners for drugs) is amended in accordance with this section.

(2) In the title, after “drugs” insert “, psychoactive substances and other substances”.

(3) In subsection (1), for “he has any drug in his body” substitute “the prisoner has in their body any—

(a) controlled drug,

(b) pharmacy medicine,

(c) prescription only medicine,

(d) psychoactive substance, or

(e) specified substance”.

(4) After subsection (2) insert—

“(2A) The Secretary of State may use any prisoners’ samples to test, on an anonymised basis, for the prevalence of the following substances in prisons—

(a) controlled drugs,

(b) medicinal products,

(c) psychoactive substances, or

(d) specified substances.”

(5) In subsection (3)—

(a) in the definition of “drug”—

(i) for ““drug” means” substitute ““controlled drug” means”;

(ii) omit “or specified drug”;

(b) after the definition of “intimate sample” insert—

• ““medicinal product” has the meaning given in regulation 2 of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012;

• “pharmacy medicine” has the meaning given in regulation 8 of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012;

• “prescription only medicine” has the meaning given in regulation 8 of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012;”;

(c) after the definition of “prison rules” insert—

• ““prisoners’ samples” means any sample—

  (a)

  provided under subsection (1) or (2), or

  (b)

  provided by prisoners voluntarily;

• “psychoactive substance” has the same meaning as in the Psychoactive Substances Act 2016;”;

(d) in the definition of “specified drug”, for ““specified drug” means” substitute ““specified substance” means”.