Spiking to be made a specific criminal offence

The King’s Speech given on the 17th of July 2024 outlined draft legislation which Labour planned to introduce in the coming months. In particular, the King’s Speech announced a Crime and Policing Bill which was described by the government as a bill aiming to ‘strengthen community, policing and give the police greater powers to deal with anti-social behaviour’.

The Crime and Policing Bill was introduced to the House of Commons and given its first reading earlier this week (Tuesday 25 February 2025). This stage takes place without any debate. MPs will next consider the Bill at the second reading stage. The date for the second reading has not yet been announced.

What is spiking?

Spiking refers to the act of secretly adding a drug or chemical to another person’s drink without their knowledge or consent. However, spiking can also occur through food, cigarettes, vapes, or even injection with a needle. It is most commonly reported in nightclubs and other public settings and is often associated with other criminal offences such as sexual offences and robbery. Women and young girls are particularly vulnerable to this offence.

Between May 2022 and April 2023, police received 6,732 reports of spiking, including 957 cases of needle spiking. On average, 561 reports were made each month, with the majority involving female victims who suspect their drink was spiked — though spiking can affect anyone.

Despite these figures, there is no comprehensive national data on the true prevalence of spiking. While the Ministry of Justice records data on specific offences, it only tracks the principal offence for which a defendant is convicted and sentenced. Due to the broad range of existing offences covering spiking-related behaviour, there is currently no detailed national data on the number of charges, prosecutions, or convictions specifically related to spiking.

Is spiking currently a criminal offence?

Spiking is already a criminal offence under existing legislation, including the Offences Against the Person Act 1861. All forms of spiking are currently illegal and can be prosecuted under a range of criminal offences depending on the circumstances of the case. Two of the most commonly used offences to charge for spiking behaviour are sections 23 and 24 of the 1861 Act. here are specific offences relating to the administration of a substance at sections 22 to 24 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861. The most commonly used is section 24, which criminalises conduct where the substance is administered with the intention to injure, aggrieve or annoy. Section 23 covers conduct where the substance endangers life or inflicts grievous bodily harm. In cases where a substance is administered with the intention of engaging in sexual activity with the victim, there is also a separate offence at section 61 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

The effectiveness of this legislation has been called into question, as spiking remains largely underreported. Police forces face significant challenges in investigating these cases, particularly because many substances used in spiking leave the victim’s system quickly, making detection difficult. Furthermore, securing expert evidence and identifying suspects within a limited timeframe adds to the complexity of pursuing prosecutions.

Spiking to be made a specific stand-alone offence

The Crime and Policing Bill aims to strengthen the law to improve police response to spiking. The Bill creates a new administering a harmful substance offence, using modern language, that covers incidents of “spiking”. The new administering a substance offence will also cover non-spiking incidents – for example where a person is sprayed with pepper spray, or where urine or faeces is thrown at a prison officer. Sections 22, 23 and 25 of the OAPA 1861 will be repealed.

In addition to legislative changes, the government aims to enhance awareness and understanding of spiking, including providing additional training and education for police forces to improve investigative approaches. This initiative may lead to quicker testing of potential victims and improvements in the testing facilities available to law enforcement, increasing the likelihood of identifying substances before they leave the complainant’s system.

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