MSPs: Human trafficking legislation should not criminalise purchase of sex

The purchase of sex should not be criminalised under new legislation to tackle human trafficking, MSPs have said.

Holyrood’s Justice Committee said the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Bill is “not the correct vehicle” for taking forward the measure.

The Cabinet Secretary for Justice is set to meet groups on both sides of the debate to inform his decision on the matter before Stage 2, the committee’s report reveals.

Meanwhile, ministers have been urged bolster the rights of suspected victims of human trafficking to access support such as accommodation and medical treatment under the proposed legislation.

The Scottish Government had been urged by a number of organisations, including Glasgow-based TARA, to use the Bill 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, reiterated concerns that the safety of sex workers would be at risk as a result of the measure.   

“While we note that this issue may be worthy of further review and detailed consultation, we are of the view that this Bill is not the correct vehicle for taking the matter forward,” says the committee’s report.

“The criminalisation of the purchase sex would have implications beyond the matters dealt with in this Bill.”

The renewed debate followed 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. 

Today’s report on the bill at Stage 1 also sees the committee call on the Scottish Government to strengthen provisions in the legislation to prevent individuals being cut off from support.

Under the Bill, the general principles of which have been backed by the committee, a duty will be placed on ministers to provide support and assistance to individuals believed to be victims of human trafficking for a “relevant period” of time to be set out in regulations.

However, it will be at their discretion whether to offer this support outwith the mandatory period, including when it expires and no decision has been reached on whether the person is indeed a victim of human trafficking.

This looser arrangement had caused senior police officers serious concerns over the impact in getting more people through the court process.

Support and assistance is to encompass a host of areas, including accommodation, day-to-day living, medical advice and treatment, legal advice as well as psychological advice and treatment.

“The Committee agrees with Police Scotland that the duty to secure support and assistance for adult victims should be strengthened,” the report reads.

MSPs also said there would be “significant merit” in including a section in the Bill relating to child victims of human trafficking and exploitation amid widespread concern over a lack of detail within the proposed legislation.

“The Committee notes the views of a number of witnesses that more detail is required in the Bill on the support and assistance that is available for child victims, whether that be through the inclusion of a specific provision on support for child victims or through appropriate cross-referencing with relevant existing legislation,” says the report.

“We are persuaded that more clarity is required to ensure that child victims receive appropriate and consistent support and assistance across all areas of Scotland.”

The committee has also voiced support for inclusion of a ‘presumption of age’ clause in the Bill, in effect meaning that where the age of a victim is uncertain but there is reason to believe they are a child, they will be treated as such for the purposes of accessing support and protection.