Twenty nightclubs to give out lids for glasses to combat drink spiking

Around twenty nightclubs will start giving out lids with glasses to avoid people having their drinks spiked. This will help the fight against sexual assaults, the secretary-general of nightlife industry body Fecasarm, Joaquim Boadas, said during an interview with Catalan broadcaster TV3. 

The measure will be implemented along with an international safety codeword system known as 'Ask for Angela'. By asking staff for Angela, members of the public can raise the alarm and let them know that they are in danger and need help. 

Those businesses introducing this tool will have stickers explaining how it works, with everything to be in place within one month. 

Some nightclubs already have the 'Ask for Angela' stickers in place and are renewing them now. Others will join the scheme for the first time. 

Boadas admitted that there have been incidents where clubgoers, especially women, are drugged in order to sexually abuse them.

Nightclubs that implement the new measures will train anyone working for them, including DJs, security staff, waiters and bar staff. "Everything we can do, we will," Boadas said.