Festivals will test your drugs for quality - but they won't take them away

British music festivals are set to bring in drug testing this year to help visitors check the quality of the product after a series of drug-related deaths in recent years.

Festival-goers will only have to provide a pill or a small scoop of powder and testers won't be challenging them on similar substances in their possession.

Reading and Leeds Festivals as well as a number of other live music events are aiming to introduce the scheme with the help of local police forces.

Festival-goers will be able to take their drugs to a testing tent run by The Loop, an organisation which usually conducts forensic testing of drugs seized by police.

A spokesperson from The Loop explained how the checks would work. They said: "We take one pill or small scoop of powder. They may or may not have other similar substances in their possession, in their tent, with their friends. It's a festival!"

Festival-goers will then be told what's in the drugs before organisers destroy whatever was handed over.

Speaking to the Press Association, Melvin Benn from Festival Republic revealed the scheme expects it to be in place at "between six and 10 festivals this year". "We talked about it during the summer of last year and the reality is that I took a decision that unless and until the National Police Chiefs' Council supported the principle of it, it was difficult for us to move forward on it.

"We'll see it this year for definite... at Leeds I'm pretty certain. It's taken a long time and it won't be at every festival, but where we think there is a need to do it we will be doing it."

Benn, who also organises Latitude, V Festival, Wireless and other events for Live Nation, has been working on the plan since last summer.

He is still waiting for support from West Yorkshire Police and the National Police Chiefs' Council.