Brussels, 01/12/2010 (Agence Europe) - Tougher punishments, more rigorous prevention and better protection for the victims of trafficking in human beings - these are the key objectives of new legislation on the matter, born of an agreement between the representatives of the Parliament and the Council and approved by 51 votes in favour, no votes against and no abstentions by the committees on civil liberties (LIBE) and women's rights (FEMM) of the European Parliament on 29 November. The new directive will apply to involvement in the sex industry or exploitation at work. “With this proposal, we will create a tough environment for traffickers in human beings and better protection for the victims”, said the rapporteur of the LIBE committee, Anna Hedh (S&D, Sweden), who steered the proposal together with Edit Bauer (EPP, Slovakia) of the FEMM committee. The agreement will be voted on in Strasbourg in December. The member states will have two years to transpose it into their legislation. The directive will not apply to Denmark or the United Kingdom, but the latter may decide to use an “opt-in”. (B.C./transl.fl)