Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to help reduce the levels of prostitution and to close brothels in the UK.

The Government is committed to tackling the harm and exploitation that can be associated with prositution, and believes that people who want to leave prostitution should be given every opportunity to find routes out.

We have provided £389,000 from the Tampon Tax to organisations which help those who want to leave prostitution and sex work, and £650,000 from the Violence Against Women and Girls Service Transformation Fund to Merseyside PCC, to provide a victim-focused service for sex workers who are victims, or at risk of sexual or domestic violence and abuse, exploitation or human trafficking.

As set out in our response to the Home Affairs Select Committee, we recognise the need for research into the nature and prevalence of prostitution in England and Wales. The Home Office has provided £150,000 to fund this research, which will be carried out by the University of Bristol, and will help inform future policy.

It is illegal to keep a brothel in England and Wales. Enforcement action is an operational matter for the police, who are in the best position to identify and respond to issues related to prostitution and sex work in their communities. They are supported in this by guidance developed by the National Policing Lead for prostitution.