Strip-searches are a difficult area of the law and people should stop taking drugs at music festivals, Premier Chris Minns said.
The premier promised a review of strip-searches in October.
Chris Minns says the practice of strip searching by police is a difficult area of the law. (Bianca De Marchi/AAP PHOTOS)
"But ultimately, the decision by NSW Police, particularly around music festivals, goes ahead so's that young people in particular, don't take illicit drugs and it doesn't lead to an overdose death at music festivals," Mr Minns told Nine's Today program on Tuesday.
"It'd be far better if these illicit substances weren't taken before people entered these music and rock festivals," he said.
The government wants to have a review but it's a difficult area of the law, Mr Minns said.
It came after reports of more than two dozen children being searched over the summer, some as young as 12, with data suggesting it involved a disproportionate number of Indigenous children.
More than 1500 children have been subjected to invasive searches by police since 2016, about 220 every year, Redfern Legal Centre said in a report published on Monday.
"Strip searches in NSW have become routine and often do not meet the required legal thresholds," the report said.
"The effects of these searches are lasting, leading to trauma, shame, embarrassment, and a fear of police," it said.