In 2000, the Home Office Police Research series, paper 125 put forward that 1,420 women were trafficked into the UK for sexual exploitation in 1998. In 2003, the Home Office estimated 3,812 trafficked women in the UK. Various media reports place the figure much higher, but these numbers are impossible to verify.
1,000 - 4,000 is probably the most accurate we can be. However, due to the covert nature of trafficking, both the lower and upper estimates are incredibly difficult to confirm. What can be said is that there is definite evidence (sourced from research, convictions and referrals from government, academic and third sector agencies) to show that trafficking exists in the UK, and that this exploitative practice, regardless of exactly how many people are trafficked, needs to be abolished.
Amnesty International states that there is evidence of cases of trafficked victims in sectors such as the hospitality and catering trade, domestic labour, care sectors, agricultural and food processing sectors, construction and prostitution within the UK.
Sex in the City, a 2004 report by survivor support agency, the POPPY Project, found that women from Eastern Europe, South East Asia and West Africa are known to be trafficked into the UK for sexual exploitation."
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