§ Mr. OatenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police forces have dedicated anti-paedophile units; and how many officers are working in those units. [151420]
§ Paul GogginsEvery chief officer of police has dedicated staff and resources to tackling sexual offending against children and child pornography. Separate anti-paedophile units are one way for police forces to organise operations against those who sexually abuse children. However, in some forces officers work within different structures, such as child protection teams, intelligence units or public protection units. Information on the approach adopted by each police force is not held centrally.
In all cases, forces will be supported by the specialised teams working on this issue in the National Criminal Intelligence Service and the National Crime Squad. There is no central record held of the numbers of officers currently engaged in work on the specific issue of child sexual abuse.
§ Mr. OatenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what additional resources have been made available to police forces to facilitate the investigation and prosecution of offenders under section 15 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. [151421]
§ Paul GogginsThe investigation and prosecution of offenders under section 15 of the Sexual Offences Act will be undertaken within existing resources. Whilst the offence is designed to allow earlier intervention than is possible under the current law, that is, before a child is sexually abused, the investigation of grooming of children for sexual motives is not a new area of responsibility for the police.