Simon Hart is supporting Soroptimists International (SI) Tenby in the battle against human trafficking and slavery.

Four members of SI Tenby gave Mr Hart an overview of the extent of slavery, grooming, trafficking and female genital mutilation going on in the UK and told him about SI Tenby's ongoing programme to combat these heinous crimes.

"We ran a schools competition in 2008 on Modern Day Slavery which culminated in an exhibition at the local museum, we launched a booklet collating the winning entries and most recently, we lead a forum in collaboration with Dyfed Powys Police and Barnardo's Cymru on Modern Day Slavery, Internal Trafficking and Internet Grooming," said SI Tenby Chairman Dilys Jenkinson.

Mr Hart said:

"I am very grateful to Soroptimist International for taking the time to brief me fully on this issue.

"It is all too easy to think of issues such as human trafficking as something that only affects large cities, but last year's court case involving an organised crime gang operating out of a house in Castlemartin proves that it is happening everywhere.

"In that case the gang were trafficking girls from Nigeria in the UK and telling them they would be trained as hairdressers and seamstresses, but they were being used for the purposes of prostitution. However, we are not only talking about Nigerian or Eastern European girls being brought into the country illegally. Girls, especially vulnerable ones who might be in care, are being taken from their homes in South Wales.

"I have written to Dyfed-Powys Police asking them to look into setting up a multi-disciplinary project board against trafficking, such as that run by Gwent Police. I am also looking into the possibility of holding a debate in Westminster Hall in the House of Commons to discuss how much this issue affects Wales."

SI Tenby welcome his enthusiastic support in tackling the problem of trafficking and related activities in the Wales and look forward to attending the proposed debate in Westminster.