EU hotlines for trafficking victims and missing kids vital

10.30.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Thu 1st Nov 2007

On the initiative of London Euro-MP Baroness Sarah Ludford, the European Parliament has backed the establishment and funding with €2 million (£1.4 million) of an EU-wide hotline for trafficking victims. This now needs the agreement of EU governments.

Sarah, who is the Liberal Democrat European justice spokeswoman, said:

"A single anti-trafficking helpline for the whole of the EU will help rescue the thousands of women and children who are trafficked every year into Europe and forced into becoming sex slaves. It could also promote the cross-border cooperation necessary to the catch the gangs responsible."

"The EU needs to gets its act together with a comprehensive response to vulnerable persons at risk of sex crime. It is shocking that European governments have still not set up the missing kids helpline that should have been in place 2 months ago. The UK, disgracefully, is one that has dragged its feet."

"I am also pressing for a European child-alert mechanism and database to help hunt for missing children like Madeleine McCann, as well as a sex offender database. These are feasible and vital projects for the EU to promote safety and fight crime."

In February this year EU governments agreed to reserve the national numbering range beginning with '116' for harmonised numbers for services of social value, and to have the same 116000 number for hotlines in all of the 27 member states to report missing children.

European justice Commissioner Franco Frattini recently told the European Parliament: "Unfortunately, I have to say that three Member States have not yet responded. Legal measures have been taken by 17 Member States. There have been calls for candidates for the management of the hotline numbers in 12 Member States, and only four Member States have so far chosen service providers: Belgium, Denmark, Greece and Portugal. So I am not at all satisfied at the state of play in implementation of the decision taken in February 2007."