Rotherham MP urges Home Office to consider support for prostitutes during coronavirus crisis

Ms Champion, who is also Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on prostitution and the global sex trade, has joined with a cross-party group of MPs, peers, a former Met Police Chief, the Church and women’s groups to urge the Home Secretary to support prostitutes in the UK.

The Labour MP said: “I’ve become increasingly concerned about the plight of the most vulnerable in our society due to Covid19, prostituted people are just such a group, but one we find easy to overlook.

“Unless the Government is pro-active in supporting prostitutes, they will be failing in their duty to safeguard some of the most marginalised in our society.”

In a letter written by the group, they call for victims of sex trafficking and modern slavery be granted reliable accommodation and support services, for the police to consider sexual exploitation when responding to cases of domestic abuse, and for specialist services for victims of sexual exploitation to receive the funding they need to continue to deliver exiting support and adapt to likely emerging service user needs due to Coronavirus.

The letter to the Home Secretary says: “Sexual exploitation is gendered: it is predominantly women and girls who are subjected to sexual exploitation, and it is overwhelmingly men who pay to sexually exploit them.

“Sexual exploitation drives modern slavery in the UK. The overwhelming majority of women reported to the national referral mechanism are brought here to be prostituted.

“Prostitution is a profitable business. We are therefore hugely concerned that when the exploiters are unable to use the women to make money because of coronavirus, the women’s lives literally become worthless to them.”

It said that although Priti Patel had taken a strong position on tackling domestic violence during the pandemic, it must be recognised that prostitution is a form of coercive control used by abusive partners.

It said: “We ask that the commitment given to tackle domestic abusers is applied to anyone trying to profit from sexual exploitation, and that similar support is given to the victims.”