London’s sex trade ‘thriving’, finds MOPAC report
16:26 07 June 2013
Police are being urged to target buyers in the industry. Picture: Lewis Whyld/PA Wire
Archant
There has been a “recent and rapid rise” in the number of women selling sex on the capital’s streets, according to a report released today.
Prostitution is still a “thriving industry” in many of London’s boroughs and women are “falling through the cracks”, the study conducted by charity Eaves for Women found.
Commissioned by the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC), the paper recommends measures intended to address the growing problem including the decriminalisation of those who sell sex and the wiping of their criminal records.
This, authors argue, would remove a significant barrier to exiting the sex industry, as records of past offences can hinder job prospects.
They also suggest police target buyers not the women who end up in the sex trade.
“Punitive efforts tend to be focused on women involved in prostitution and not enough effort is put into tackling perpetrators,” report author Laura Brown said.
“By highlighting problems and gaps as well as drawing attention to examples of good practice and innovative work within boroughs, we hope this report can inform a more effective pan-London strategy to address prostitution and tackle exploitation.”
Other findings of the report include the observation that the sex industry in some east London boroughs “geared up” for the Olympics, and in some cases there had been a “potentially deliberate ghettoisation” of street prostitution to contain it to specific areas, though the report does not identify them.
As part of the study, data on the number of prostitution-related offences was obtained from the Metropolitan Police.
Tower Hamlets had the most arrests (42), between June 2011 and May 2012. Lambeth and Ealing were close behind, with 38 and 21 arrests respectively.
London’s deputy mayor for policing, Stephen Greenhalgh, said the paper was “an important study”.
“All women must feel safe in London, and MOPAC’s role is to ensure that they get the support they need,” he said.
Nearly 100 women currently or formerly involved in prostitution in the capital were interviewed as part of the research.
