David Cameron and Nick Clegg stand accused of sending the "wrong signal" to pimps and human traffickers across the world after the coalition decided against endorsing an EU directive designed to co-ordinate European efforts to combat the trade in sex slaves. As new figures show that fewer traffickers are being jailed than at any time in the last five years, Labour called for a government rethink on the directive, appealing to the pro-European Liberal Democrats to explain to their coalition partners the benefits of EU action.
Denis MacShane [above], Labour's former Europe minister, launched the appeal after the government decided not to sign up to the directive. The document includes a common definition of the crime of trafficking, to make it easier to convict offenders in the EU's 27 member states.
Campaigners regard co-ordinated EU action as essential because many victims are trafficked through the new member states of Bulgaria and Romania. The directive would allow suspects to be prosecuted for offences in other member states, and would boost the rights of victims.
The coalition is invoking a special British right on any EU justice and home affairs measures. The directive will be decided in the EU by the system known as qualified majority voting, according to which no member state can wield a veto. But Britain has the right to decide whether to "opt in".
MacShane called for the coalition to do so. In a letter to Clegg, he wrote: "Women in particular will be alarmed to learn that the Liberal Democrats are willing to support these efforts to weaken the directive. It is the wrong signal to send to the pimps and traffickers. I hope you can persuade the prime minister to drop his opt-out policy on this welcome effort to combat sex-slave trafficking."
His comments were endorsed by the charity Anti-Slavery International. Klara Skrivankova, co-ordinator of the charity's programme on trafficking, said: "Despite significant positive steps, the government cannot become complacent and say that the UK is already doing enough. Without international co-operation, the government will lose the battle with the traffickers. By choosing not to opt in to the directive, the government is failing in its efforts to combat this transnational crime."
A Home Office spokesman said: "Human trafficking is a brutal form of organised crime, and combating it is a key priority for the government. The UK already complies with most of what is required by the draft EU directive. "The government will review the UK's position once the directive has been agreed, and will continue to work constructively with European partners on matters of mutual interest. By not opting in now but reviewing our position when the directive is agreed, we can choose to benefit from being part of a directive that is helpful but avoid being bound by measures that are against our interests."
The row over the directive came as new figures challenged the claim by law enforcement agencies that they are cracking down on criminal gangs which have forced an estimated 2,600 foreign women into prostitution in brothels in England and Wales. Only five people were convicted of human trafficking for sexual exploitation in the first six months of this year, according to figures from the UK Human Trafficking Centre, compared with 33 and 34 in the previous two 12-month periods. A further nine were convicted of other offences, having been arrested on suspicion of trafficking.
The apparently significant fall in the rate of convictions for the crime, which carries a maximum 14-year sentence, follows claims last month by the Crown Prosecution Service that "combating human trafficking is a high priority for the CPS and the criminal justice system". The number of prosecutions has remained reasonably steady, at 114 in 2008/09 and 102 in 2009/10, according to figures released by Dominic Grieve, the attorney general; but the conviction rate has dropped.
A spokesman for the CPS said the number of convictions varied for several reasons, including the fact that fewer cases may be brought to prosecutors for consideration, and that fewer defendants may be involved in each trial. "We acknowledge that it is challenging to successfully prosecute human trafficking cases, but we are committed to bringing prosecutions when there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest to do so," he said.
Nicholas Watt and Robert Booth, the Guardian
