NUM CEO, Alex Feis-Bryce said: "The Metropolitan Police have once again acted without considering the consequences or, indeed, the National Police Guidelines. On the one hand they label the sex workers as "victims" that they want to "rescue" while subjecting them to frightening raids, seizing their money and detaining them. The fact that local support services were not informed but the media were reveals a great deal about their approach. After the horrendous conduct of police in the unjustified Soho raids which took place in December 2013, I had hoped that they had learned some lessons. Clearly not. On a daily basis we support sex workers who have been attacked by dangerous individuals but rarely have the confidence to report this to the police. This will only serve to embolden the offenders and make it even less likely that sex workers will speak to police. I have made contact with the National Police Lead for Prostitution and the London Police Lead to express our disgust, as an organisation supporting sex worker safety, at the ill-conceived and actions of the police which will only serve to further marginalise people they are employed to protect."
