Olympics 'will boost sex trade near stations'

The 2012 Olympics will spark an influx of prostitutes to key transport hubs, a Labour MEP claims.

Mary Honeyball fears areas like King's Cross, once synonymous with the vice trade, will again be targeted by people traffickers hoping to cash in on the hundreds of thousands of people arriving in the area on their way to the Games.

She cited reports that up to 3,000 women were sold into the sex trade and smuggled into Switzerland ahead of Euro 2008. Ms Honeyball, of Bloomsbury, said trafficking of women through King's Cross and St Pancras International was set to rise ahead of 2012 and could lead to more prostitution in the area. "Most prostitutes take drugs and that leads to crime," she added.

Terry Stacy, Islington council's executive member for community safety, said: "Levels of prostitution in Islington have significantly fallen in the last two years and the area around King's Cross has improved. But we know there is still work to be done."