Manitoba looking to crack down on sex trafficking in hotels

A hotel bed is seen in this undated file photo. (Pexels)

Manitobans are being invited to weigh in on a hospitality regulation designed to prevent sexual exploitation in the industry.

A 45-day consultation on the hospitality sector customer registry regulation is now underway.

It would address sexual exploitation by requiring hotels and temporary accommodations to hold customer information in a registry and provide appropriate identification from guests.

Michael Juce, president and CEO of the Manitoba Hotel Association, told CTV that the proposed regulation won't change the guest process - but instead will enable police to act more quickly if they suspect there is human trafficking involved.

“I think the biggest change here really is that it gives police that ability to access these hotel records, or other accommodation provider records, quicker, without a warrant,” said Juce.

The organization says - on the hotel end - there aren’t additional costs related to implementing the new procedures.

“These are records that hotels will have on file of their guests, and there really won’t be a large change in the day-to-day operations of hotels,” Juce said.

The association also said its members are in favour of the regulation.

“Anything we can do to help stop this terrible problem from happening we are in favour of,” said Juce.

If you’re interested in providing feedback, you can visit here.

The consultation period is open until June 14.