Stop gangs recruiting children

The EPP Group is calling for urgent European action to stop organised crime groups from recruiting and exploiting children for drug trafficking, violence, and migrant smuggling. Their recruitment by organised crime groups has reached alarming levels across Europe. The European Parliament will vote on a resolution later today.

According to Europol, minors are now involved in more than 70% of criminal markets. Increasingly, criminal networks are using online platforms and social media to recruit vulnerable young people.

"The recruitment of children by organised crime is not a new phenomenon, but it has recently increased alarmingly in scale, scope and methods, representing a serious threat to EU security and a grave violation of the rights of children, used and exploited by ruthless criminal groups," says Caterina Chinnici MEP, EPP Group’s negotiator of the resolution and a former juvenile public prosecutor in Italy.

The EPP Group is calling for a coordinated European strategy. The EU should use existing laws, such as the Digital Services Act, to require online platforms to address algorithms that help criminals target and recruit young people.

"We need to make sure that we use all tools at hand to protect children in the best way we can. This requires not only the right legal framework, but also a whole-of-society approach. It is about parents being aware of what their children do online. It is about teachers reacting when a child’s behaviour changes dramatically or becomes unusual compared to before. Local programmes that reduce criminal influence and support families have been effective in keeping young people away from crime. Addressing this worrying trend requires all of us to play our part," says Lena Düpont MEP, EPP Group Spokeswoman on Home Affairs.