Select committee: Home Affairs Committee
Recommendation 15
First Report - Human trafficking
Published 8 Dec 2023
Paragraph 66
Addressed to Home Office
Home Affairs Committee Human Trafficking All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The Government should conduct a comprehensive review of all legislative, policy and educational initiatives that are underway to reduce demand for sexual exploitation and report on this by June 2024. This review should compare the UK’s approach with Human trafficking 73 European countries and consider whether the Government should follow others in criminalising all acts of paying for or attempting to pay for sex and decriminalising victims of exploitation by removing penalties for soliciting.
From: Home Affairs Committee, First Report - Human trafficking (HC 124), paragraph 66, 8 December 2023
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 22 February 2024 (deadline 8 February 2024).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government says it remains "committed to tackling the crime of modern slavery" and responds to each recommendation, accepting some points and declining others with stated reasons.
- On strategy and reporting, the government says it "will resume publication of an Annual Report on Modern Slavery" this year and "will also consider delivering a new modern slavery strategy".
- It does not accept the recommendation on a statutory definition of child criminal exploitation, saying it does "not believe a statutory definition is required" to ensure victims are supported.
- On the 12 months' support commitment for confirmed victims, it concluded that the existing needs-based approach ensures support is available "for the necessary length of time, including if this is 12 months, or longer".
- On Independent Child Trafficking Guardians, it remains committed to national rollout, which is "still subject to approval of business cases and funding arrangements", and says it will publish evaluations of the ICTG programme and devolved decision-making pilot.