The issue of human trafficking has become increasingly contentious in the UK. Last month it was raised in the House of Lords by the independent peer Lady Young. She has led a campaign to close a gap in the law which, she claims, prevents the authorities from dealing effectively with the issue of trafficking.
I represent London and was particularly concerned to learn that the London Police force (the Metropolitan Police Force), which polices the most populous city in the European Union, is proposing to close its dedicated human trafficking unit citing a lack of resources. The consequences of doing this will reverberate across the globe.
I’ve campaigned on the issue of human trafficking for a long time and I understand that it is a complex crime and precisely because of this, it necessitates the skill of specially trained officers, to both catch the perpetrators and work with victims who are incredibly vulnerable and often too afraid to give evidence.
My opponents argue that the unit is too expensive to maintain in relation to the number of people who are caught and brought to justice, but as Lady Young pointed out loop holes in the law mean an offender is often charged with other crimes, or sometimes not at all meaning the figures illustrating those who are caught are subject to a margin or error.
Human Trafficking is regarded by Interpol as the third largest international crime after arms and drugs trading and the Metropolitan Police’s unit is regarded as an exemplary model in other parts of the world. If the proposed changes are given the green light from the commissioner then the unit’s work will in future be given to Metropolitan officers who don’t have specific knowledge or training in this area.
The Metropolitan Police’s decision is even more preposterous bearing in mind that trafficking is on the rise in the run-up to the 2012 Olympics. This, like all other international sporting events is predicted to cause a steep rise in prostitution. Thousands of prostitutes were drawn to Germany during the last World Cup. Munich police confirmed that the number of women in licensed sex clubs increased dramatically in this period from 500 to 800, an increase of about 63%. I launched a petition last month to stop the Metropolitan Police Force from closing its dedicated unit for Human Trafficking. The petition to the head of the Metropolitan Police, Sir Paul Stephenson, highlights the support there is for keeping the specialised unit open. The petition has received support from UK based and international charities, British politicians and trade unions including the Anti Slavery Organisation, the Public and Commercial Services Union and individual politicians including British Labour MP Keith Vaz and my MEP colleagues including London MEP, Claude Moraes and local councillors.
This is the second time the unit has been threatened with closure, but following significant pressure by several organisations and politicians, it was given a reprieve. The final decision is expected to be made on 16 November. I will present the petition on 13 November  in London to the head of the Metropolitan Police, Sir Paul Stephenson and to City Hall for the attention of the Mayor of London Boris Johnson.

Mary Honeyball is a UK Member of the European Parliament from the Labour Party and a member of the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament