Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Home Department, what steps he has taken to commission specialist services that aim to support women to exit prostitution and enter the workplace.

The Government's priority is to protect those selling sex from harm and exploitation and target those who exploit vulnerable people involved in prostitution. We believe that people who want to leave prostitution should be given every opportunity to find routes out. We continue to work closely with the police, Crown Prosecution Service, other front-line agencies and wider partners to ensure the legislation achieves these aims.

We have provided over £2m to organisations supporting sex workers, including £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.