Young People are Being Sexually Exploited for “Sex for Rent” – When Will the Government Act? MP Peter Kyle asks.

In our city of Brighton and Hove, we have a perfect storm – an acute housing shortage, and two universities bringing many young people in need of accommodation, so that according to the council the pressure on housing is higher in the city than most other areas.

Renters across the city will also know that the cost of renting is becoming more and more unaffordable, with recent research showing that in Brighton and Hove, the average rent for a two bedroom flat has increased by 27.8 per cent since 2011.

Unfortunately, there are websites such as Craigslist which are allowing people to take advantage of this situation, and the increased vulnerability of young people looking for a place to stay, by posting adverts offering “free” accommodation, in return for sex.

Shockingly, we do not have to look hard for these adverts – they are remarkably easy to come across online, and can often be disturbingly explicit, detailing the age, look and demeanour of the tenant they’re looking for, as well as the amount and type of sex that is expected.

Sadly, this is a growing problem.

A recent YouGov poll commissioned by Shelter estimated that a quarter of a million women have had a landlord ask for sexual favours in exchange for free or discounted accommodation in the past five years, including almost 140,000 last year.

And because this is a relatively new problem, it seems that the Government and our police forces are having trouble keeping up.

Let’s be clear – this practice is illegal and those offering “sex for rent” are breaking the law.

In fact, the law is broken as soon as one of those adverts is posted.

But as far as we know, we are yet to see a single prosecution for this offence, and Craiglist, which is hosting many of the adverts, refuse to take any action or even to accept any responsibility. Meanwhile, young people are continuing to be drawn into these hideous arrangements and are becoming extremely vulnerable.

So I’m calling for three things. Firstly, we need to try and bring down the immense barriers facing victims who are, understandably, often extremely unlikely to go through with a prosecution.

The classification of victims as prostitutes in these cases is one barrier that could be tackled, so I’m calling for a new legal definition for victims of sex for rent, to enable more victims to feel able to come forward.

Secondly, as I said in the House of Commons last week, Craigslist are acting like pimps, so why aren’t we treating them like pimps?

If the police see somebody on the street committing the same crime, they wouldn’t hesitate to take action. So why should this be any different?

We cannot allow these websites to flout our laws so blatantly, and to simply look the other way as their platforms continue to facilitate appalling acts of sexual exploitation. So, I am asking the Government to take decisive action and let them know this won’t be tolerated in our country.

Finally, we need to look both at prevention and enforcement of the law, so that the people offering these vile arrangements are prosecuted as the criminals they are.

These crimes are happening right under our noses, and it is time for the Government and our police forces to act.

Peter Kyle is the Labour MP for Hove