Chair of human trafficking group challenges PSNI on 'worryingly' low enforcement of sex buyer law
The PSNI has been challenged over what one MLA calls "worryingly" low enforcement rates of a law which makes it a criminal offence to pay for sex.
The concern was raised by the chair of Stormont's newly formed All Party Group (APG) on Human Trafficking and Commercial Sexual Exploitation.
In 2015 Stormont passed a new law - strongly backed by all the main parties - which made it an offence to pay for sex.
Based on the 'Nordic Model', instead of prosecuting women for prostitution it assumes they are usually suffering from exploitation.
Instead the law aimed to criminalise ordinary buyers of sex, in a bid to drive down demand for trafficked women.
The new APG contains members from a number of parties, although all MLAs are invited to join.
Chairman and DUP MLA Peter Martin told the News Letter today: “We have a law in place and it needs to be enforced. My sense from having conversations around this area with specialists in the field is that the number of prosecutions in terms of this law are extremely low and worryingly so."
Speaking to the assembly today, he paid tribute to DUP Peer Lord Morrow whose private member's bill created the new offence in 2015.
"Ten years on however, human trafficking remains pervasive, adaptive, and deeply entrenched," he said. “Criminal networks continue to exploit gaps between immigration systems, labour markets, and social protections. Technology has accelerated recruitment and control.”
He added: "A critical issue in addressing commercial sexual exploitation is the persistent myth of choice. The presence of money does not negate coercion. Where there is imbalance of power, vulnerability, fear, or lack of viable alternatives, consent becomes meaningless. For children, consent is not legally or morally possible under any circumstances."
Jessica Mcdowell, Policy Officer at CARE NI said earlier this week: “On any given day over 300 women can be advertised for sale on pimping websites in Northern Ireland.
“This is illegal. The law is clear, purchasing sex is a crime. If that law was enforced, demand would reduce and women and girls would receive better protection."
The News Letter invited the PSNI to comment on the concerns that the law is not being enforced, with only one ordinary would-be buyer known to have been prosecuted in court in ten years.
The PSNI did not address enforcement rates.
Detective Inspector Rachel Miskelly, from the PSNI Organised Crime Branch, said their focus is primarily about rescuing victims and identifying organised crime groups.
“Anyone paying for sexual services in Northern Ireland, is committing a crime," she said.
She added: “Our focus is to identify and safeguard victims who have been exploited, and to identify and gather evidence against members of organised crime groups who make their money from exploiting vulnerable individuals."
CARE NI says the gravity of the situation was illustrated in a Sky News investigation in June of two UK “pimping” websites. It said this revealed significant signs of central control – repeated use of the same contact numbers, and/or advert text for many different women in different areas.
Over several months such red flags were found on over 7,000 adverts on one website - more than half the total number of listings. Another similar website found 1,000 with similar red flags.