Rising costs ‘will see people turn to prostitution’
THE cost of living crisis could lead to people stealing to pay their bills and feed their kids and turn the most desperate towards prostitution and selling drugs, a West Midlands police chief has warned.
Tom McNeil said he was worried the pressure of paying household bills could force the worst-off into taking extreme measures in order to survive.
The Assistant Police and Crime Commissioner (APCC) said he feared the cost of living crisis would result in rising crime. He insisted there was no excuse for crime but “desperate circumstances lead to people to make desperate decisions”.
And he has accused Chancellor Rishi Sunak of “overseeing poverty” as he painted a stark picture of the extreme measures struggling families could go to.
He said he was worried people could turn to sex work or that children could end up selling drugs “to help their mum pay to heat the house” or “feed their brothers and sisters”.
It comes as hundreds more people in the region are forced to use food banks because they can’t afford to pay for a weekly shop.
In a letter to the Chancellor, the
Labour APCC said: “The level of poverty you are overseeing may see a rise in parents stealing to feed their children. We may see car theft increases. People could choose to rob or steal to keep up the rent payments.
“Vulnerable people may be exploited into sex work. Children may be manipulated into selling drugs by hardened criminals because they want to help their mum pay to heat the house, feed their brothers and sisters and keep the loan sharks at bay.”
Mr McNeil also accused the beleaguered Chancellor, fresh from scandals over his wife’s tax affairs and a lockdown party fine, of not doing enough to help the worst-off families who have been hit by huge rises to energy bills and other household costs.
He said: “This will include many families who were already struggling to cope, despite working extremely hard. Your tax rises, coupled with rising energy, travel and food prices are going to create a wave of profound poverty and desperation.
“You might not have experienced desperation in your life, but it is well documented that it can lead people to do desperate things.
“Not only do desperate circumstances lead to people to make desperate decisions but it will also mean that there is an increased likelihood of the vulnerable being ever more likely to become victims of crime and criminal exploitation.
“I am extremely concerned that the impact of rising living costs will create the conditions for rising crime, including youth violence.”
I am concerned rising costs will create conditions for rising crime Tom McNeil