§ Mrs. Dunwoodyasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what evidence is available to him of a link between child prostitution and runaways; and if he will make a statement;
(2) if he will set up and fund a research project endeavouring to establish the number of runaway children reported missing throughout the United Kingdom, and to investigate the number of homeless children involved in child prostitution in the metropolitan area;
(3) if he will convene an urgent meeting of chief constables throughout the United Kingdom with a view to establishing what information they have about runaway children; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Douglas HoggThe police are aware of the dangers to runaway children, including the risk that they may become involved in crime, and endeavour to assist them within the limits laid down by the law. Police forces keep records for operational purposes of persons reported missing. Chief officers do not consider that collecting further statistical information would offer them any practical assistance, and research to establish reliable estimates of the numbers of homeless children involved in prostitution would be extremely difficult, given the illegal and covert nature of the activity.
§ Mr. Peter Bruinvelsasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 26 February, Official Report, column 345, to the hon. Member for Leicester, East if he will take steps to establish a unit to collate for the future statistics relating to missing children from each police force area; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Douglas HoggNo. We are not persuaded that such a unit would be justified on operational grounds.