By Zena Gardner – 16/02/10

Andrew Norman, 51, organiser of Thimbelberry Music Festival held in County Durham, was arrested at the end of last year on suspicion of allowing drug use at his event, namely allowing cannabis to be smoked.

The three-day event that has been going for seven years, dubbed The Glastonbury of the North, attracts hundreds of music lovers from across the UK, but has not been as popular with nearby villagers. In 2005, more than 100 people lodged complaints about the festival when the music at the event went on beyond its 11pm licence. Mr Norman admitted this breached the terms of his licence and he was ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and pay £150 costs.

In relation to the arrest relating to drugs use at the event, Inspector Tony Avery, of Durham Police, said: “Officers visited the site of the Thimbleberry Music Festival, following concerns raised by members of the local community. As a result of the officers’ inquiries, a 51-year-old local man was arrested early on Friday, October 2, on suspicion of allowing drugs to be taken on his land or premises.”

After being questioned at Bishop Auckland police station, Mr Norman was released on police bail pending further inquiries.

On Friday 11th December 2009 Mr Norman appeared in court facing the charge that he “did permit the use of cannabis on his premises”. He has not entered a plea and was due back in court on the 5th February 2010 to face committal to Crown Court.

The charge is being brought under Section 8 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. An amendment to this Act passed by the Government in 2001 made it a criminal offence for people to knowingly allow premises they own, manage, or have responsibility for, to be used by any other person for the adminstration or use of any controlled drugs.

No festival permits the use of drugs, we all know its as illegal on site as it is in the “real world”, there are measures in place to prevent the use of controlled substances, what more can organisers do? Is this something that all festival organisers now face? Is this setting the beginning of a slippery slope for other events and could this spell the beginning of a bad time or even the end for festivals?

A facebook group supporting Mr Norman and his event can be found here