The House on Thursday passed legislation enabling police for the first time to administer drug tests to motorists.

The purported aim is to deter people from driving under the influence of narcotics, which according to authorities has increasingly led to road fatalities in recent years.

The bills were passed by a majority vote – 29 for, 15 against and one abstention – as debate raged on whether the ‘narcotest’ impinges on civil liberties.

The new regimen provides for strict penalties on anyone driving under the influence of drugs or who refuses to provide saliva or blood for a narco test.

Persons found to be under the influence while behind the wheel are liable to up to three years’ imprisonment, a fine up to €3,500 and deprivation of their driving licence for up to three years.

The law also provides for three to six penalty points on offenders’ driving licences.

All state revenues from fines will be channelled into a dedicated fund for drug-rehabilitation programmes

Drivers will initially give police a saliva sample for a preliminary test, and if drugs are detected, the person concerned will be asked to provide saliva again for laboratory testing, at the state lab.

Main opposition AKEL, which voted against the legislation, said it was too draconian as it allows police to stop and check any driver in any circumstances, whether or not an officer has reasonable suspicion that a motorist is under the influence.

Responding, DISY deputy Rikkos Mappourides said that checks based on reasonable suspicion would require a court order, which for obvious reasons would turn out to be a self-defeating practice.

Officers, he argued, are already administering alcohol tests on drivers, again without needing reasonable suspicion to flag down a vehicle, and experience has shown that the police have not abused this power.
AKEL MP Aristos Damianou cited a study by the Cyprus University of Technology (TEPAK), according to which the implementation of the narco test in other countries has not resulted in a decline in driving-related deaths.

AKEL’s Nicos Katsourides noted that a breathalyser and a saliva sample are not the same.

Saliva constitutes genetic material and as such raises privacy issues, he noted.

The narco test bills had been languishing in committee since 2010.