Child Prostitution

Child Prostitution

Incredibly, it is still an offence for anyone over the age of 10 to ‘loiter or solicit for the purpose of prostitution’ . We’re talking here about some of the most damaged, exploited and abused children, and if we want them to feel able to ask for help, we need to guarantee that they face no risk of prosecution whatsoever. Urgent change is essential.

During the passage of the Sexual Offences Act last year, David Blunkett was asked whether he would confirm that this new Act would de-criminalise child prostitution. He said that it would. Here's the relevant excerpt from Hansard:

Sexual Offences Bill - Second Reading in the Commons, 15th July 2003:
Mr. Hilton Dawson (Lancaster and Wyre): I am grateful to my right hon. Friend and I commend him for introducing this important legislation. Can he confirm that we have now reached the moment when it is possible to say that children who have been involved in prostitution or pornography are removed from any criminal liability whatever?

Mr. Blunkett: Children are, and the intent behind the clauses is to get round the difficulty that in the past it had to be proved that the person exploiting the child did so for material gain. That was much more difficult to prove than the suspicion itself. We are now removing that difficulty and we are also for the first time criminalising the payer for sex with a child.

That wasn't quite correct, as children could still be prosecuted under the Street Offences Act 1959, and so Hilton Dawson tabled an amendment at Committee Stage of the Bill to take under-18s out of the Street Offences Act altogether. He was persuaded to withdraw this amendment by Beverley Hughes on the basis that the Government was about to conduct a review of Street Offences, and the matter would be dealt with there.

In July 2004 the Government duly published a consultation on Street Offences (called "Paying the Price"). Far from removing criminal liability from child prostitutes the Government says that, although they accept that child prostitutes are primarily victims of abuse, there are: "compelling arguments" for keeping loitering or soliciting as a criminal offence in respect of those under 18 to "underline the message that prostitution involving children and young people is wholly unacceptable."

Using the same rationale, perhaps we should make it a criminal offence to be the victim of any form of child abuse!

Although the Government is inviting views on this extraordinary idea, and may be persuaded into a rather more humane approach, it could be a long time before any action is taken. It is already a year since David Blunkett ‘confirmed’ that child prostitution was de-criminalised.

Child prostitution is a serious child protection issue. We believe that so long as there remains any risk of criminal prosecution, young prostitutes will feel afraid to ask for the help they so desperately need, or to give the police the details of the pimps who have exploited and abused them.

Teenagers do not choose prostitution as some kind of career option. They are desperate – they may have run away from home and already have experienced abuse. Some children are brought into the UK for the sole purpose of prostitution. Many suffer violence and intimidation from pimps, or are given addictive drugs such as Heroin and then forced to prostitute themselves to support their addiction.

During Committee Stage of the Children Act, Hilton Dawson MP tabled an amendment to s1(1) Street Offences Act 1959 that would have removed criminal liability from children. Sadly, this was not successful, but we will continue to press for change.