Airbnb and Uber urged to act on teenage drug mules 

A minister has urged tech companies to report teenagers suspected of ferrying drugs for gangs as part of a nationwide crackdown on the problem. Victoria Atkins, the crime, safeguarding and vulnerability minister, said Uber and Airbnb must train users to identify victims of grooming who have been forced to transport drugs across along routes called county lines.

In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph, Mrs Atkins said: "Any help that major organisations like Uber can give would be very welcome. These huge companies are under quite a lot of public attention in terms of their corporate social responsibility and it would be very interesting if [they]could help us."

Exploited children are made to travel vast distances on trains and in taxis, including Uber cars. Once they reach their destination, they stay in properties rented by gangs, increasingly short-term lets and Airbnb homes.

"This is not just a policing matter," said Mrs Atkins. "We need to make people aware it's happening so they're alert to it. We also need the help of train operators, taxi drivers and local authorities."

The mother of a child who was groomed by a county lines gang welcomed the minister's comments. "These kids are operating right under the noses of British Transport Police, on trains, in taxis and in Ubers, but no one is asking anything," the mother, who asked to remain anonymous told the Telegraph.