01 Jul 2016
NPCC response to Home Affairs Committee report on prostitution
Chief officers have responded to the Home Affairs Select Committee interim report on prostitution, emphasising the importance of a proportionate and risk-based response. Sex workers must be understood as a vulnerable group within society.
Assistant Chief Constable Nikki Holland, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) Lead for Prostitution and Exploitation, appeared before the Committee in March and submitted written evidence as part of its inquiry. She said:
"The majority of sex workers are not committing criminal offences but they are, nevertheless, a vulnerable group which we have a responsibility to protect. The horrendous murder of five young women in Ipswich ten years ago illustrated this point. Since 1990, 152 sex workers have been murdered in the UK.
"It is the job of the police to enforce the law, not to make it, and we will always aim to do this in a way that reflects the threat, harm and risk to the individual communities we protect.
“Today’s report praises the work of the service and our focus on protecting vulnerable people. The new NPCC operational guidance on policing sex work will build on that momentum by increasing consistency across forces, highlighting good practice and emphasising the importance of tackling exploitation in all its forms.”
The NPCC operational guidance, published earlier this year, is available to view here:
Assistant Chief Constable Nikki Holland's oral and written evidence is available here:
Contact information
Communications office
By phone: 0800 538 5058
By email: press.office@npcc.police.uk