Momentum grows for new law on paying for sex

Ministers face renewed pressure to reconsider prostitution laws after senior police officers appeared to relax their stance on criminalising the purchase of sex.
 
Scottish police have previously raised concerns over the practical difficulties of enforcing such a measure amid successive attempts by MSPs to introduce legislation at Holyrood.
 
Whilst Police Scotland has reiterated enforcement still requires careful consideration, the head of their national rape taskforce has indicated a willingness to engage with other jurisdictions who have gone down this route.
 
The Scottish Government has been urged by a number of organisations to use the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Bill, which is currently being considered by the Justice Committee, as an avenue to revisit criminalisation of the purchase of sex.

However, sex worker-led charity SCOT-PEP, a vocal opponent of attempts to criminalise the purchase of sex in Scotland, has reiterated concerns that the safety of sex workers would be at risk as a result of the measure.    
 
The renewed debate follows Northern Ireland opting to become the only part of the UK where people can be convicted of paying for sex. The Irish government has proposed similar wide-ranging reforms too. 

The developments seek to shift the emphasis onto those who pay for sex akin to a model that has been operating in Sweden as well as other Nordic countries such as Norway and Iceland.

“Police Scotland previously intimated concerns in relation to the practical application of any legislation to criminalise the purchase of sex,” Detective Superintendent Louise Raphael told Holyrood.

“Any future contribution in consultation on this matter will be similarly based on the operational implications for police in enforcing such a law.

“That said, whilst acknowledging the separate and distinct legislative frameworks in place, there are lessons and experience from elsewhere in Europe that can be explored further to better inform the debate.

“Similarly, it would be beneficial to assess the impact of new legislation in Northern Ireland relating to paying for sexual services of a person when that law is enacted.”

This would imply a standalone piece of legislation would more likely be the preferred route given the law in Northern Ireland does not come into effect until June 1.    

The Prostitution (Public Places) (Scotland) Act 2007, passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2007, targets kerb-crawlers, criminalising soliciting a prostitute for sex and loitering for the same purpose.

However, previous attempts by Labour MSPs Rhoda Grant and her former party colleague Trish Godman to go a step further and make it an offence to purchase sex have failed to garner sufficient support at Holyrood.

Churches and other religious organisations wrote to the First Minister last month calling for the purchase of sex to be made illegal. 

A group set up to help identify and support victims of trafficking has also recommended the committee “considers the inclusion of the criminalisation of the purchase of sex, decriminalisation of the sellers alongside clear support to exit prostitution”.

Glasgow-based TARA warned legislative developments throughout other parts of Britain risked Scotland being seen as “a ‘soft touch’ for the criminals profiting from this crime through the significant sexual exploitation of women”.

But a SCOT-PEP spokeswoman said: "Our arguments are the same now as they were during the last attempt to criminalise the purchase of sex. Criminalising the clients of sex workers will have a hugely harmful impact on sex workers. 

"Sex workers' safety strategies when negotiating with clients will be impeded. For instance, clients will be deterred from providing identifying details about themselves to sex workers as they will fear getting caught. At present, sex workers’ safety depends on their ability to screen their clients.

"Sex workers are also more likely to isolate themselves in order to minimise the risk to clients of getting caught. That must surely be the opposite of the intended outcome."

A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “This is a very complex area of policy relating to wider issues than currently contained within the Bill.

“We are speaking with a range of different interested parties and will consider carefully any amendments brought forward relating to the criminalisation of the purchase of sex.”

Police Scotland Assistant Chief Constable Malcolm Graham and the Lord Advocate Frank Mulholland were among those who gave evidence before the Justice Committee on the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Bill this morning.