Universities are to be required to introduce policies by the end of the year to crack down on drink and needle spiking, amid concern about increasingly brazen attacks on students.
Michelle Donelan, the universities minister, said she had seen the impact of spiking first-hand and that it was a horrific crime that she was determined to stamp out in higher education.
On Tuesday, she launched a working group, made up of vice-chancellors, police, campaigners and victims, to spearhead plans for practical action to help keep students safe.
Although the true prevalence of spiking remains unclear, police data obtained by the Commons home affairs committee said 81% of recorded victims were students, while a recent survey by the student news site the Tab suggested 11% of students believed they had had their drink spiked.
