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Paedophilia: Internet

Answer

Online Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) is an appalling crime that this Government is committed to stamping out. The NCA’s 2016 National Strategic Assessment of Serious and Organised Crime, has designated the threat from child sexual exploitation and abuse (CSEA) one of the highest priority crime threats facing the UK. There is significant under-reporting of online grooming and it is therefore difficult fully to quantify the scale of the threat. The NCA’s Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Command leads the fight to tackle grooming. An additional £10 million in funding was provided to CEOP and this has led to a near doubling of its investigative capability. The NCA and police are investing more resources than ever before to tackle online grooming, including dedicated undercover resources to target those who pose the greatest risk. Oversight and scrutiny of the law enforcement response to online child sexual exploitation (CSE), including grooming, is provided by the Online CSE Pursue Board, chaired by Chief Constable Simon Bailey. Collaborative working between Police forces and the NCA, overseen by this Board, is resulting in around 375 arrests each month for online CSE offences, and the safeguarding of around 450 children each month. CEOP Command CEOP Command has developed a comprehensive education programme, called Thinkuknow, which provides targeted advice to children, parents and carers, including on how to use social media safely. In 2015/16, around 3.5 million children saw the NCA's Thinkuknow educational material. Further detail on the Thinkuknow campaign can be found online at: www.thinkuknow.co.uk

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

57082

Session

2016-17

Grouped for answer

Yes

Subjects

Internet Paedophilia

Link

View this Written question on www.parliament.uk