To ask the Minister of Justice to detail (i) what work she is planning to carry out to protect children from being exploited by criminal and drug-dealing gangs, for instance, when they have drug debts; and (ii) what work she will do with other departments in order to protect children from being exploited by these gangs.

Those who seek to exploit children in this way commit child abuse. The prevention of, and protection from, child criminal exploitation is a complex matter requiring input from a range of statutory and non-statutory partners. It requires a strong multi-agency approach if we are to successfully tackle this heinous crime and protect children.

The Executive Programme on Paramilitarism and Organised Crime (EPPOC) has been at the forefront in Northern Ireland of developing evidence-based understanding and service provision for young people at risk of, and experiencing, child criminal exploitation. It has developed into a coherent proposition involving direct service provision to young people, multi-agency initiatives, and development of initiatives to enable the wider system to support young people at the risk of harm from paramilitary groups. Details of some of the key projects have been provided in AQW 6852/22-27.

The Child Protection Senior Officials Group (CPSOG) provides cross-Departmental strategic direction on existing and emerging child protection issues. CPSOG is chaired by the Department of Health and the Department of Justice is a core member of the Group. In 2023, CPSOG agreed a two-year action plan to address child criminal exploitation (CCE) in NI. This cross-Departmental work, jointly led by Departments of Justice and Health, builds on the work of EPPOC to create a system wide response to child exploitation, including exploitation from criminal and drug dealing gangs. The ultimate aim is to improve the wellbeing of children and young people experiencing or at risk of criminal exploitation and to improve their longer-term life chances.

The Department’s Modern Slavery, Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation Branch has engaged on issues concerning child exploitation in the development of the draft three-year Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Strategy, including commitments and actions around developing operational responses to child exploitation and ensuring appropriate support is available to victims. The Strategy will be published shortly.