Criminalisation, of sex workers or clients, undermines safety.
The law criminalising clients, first implemented in Sweden in 1999 and known as the “Nordic Model” is touted as feminist because it criminalises men (i.e. the clients) rather than women (i.e. the victims). But its effect on women has been disastrous. Sex workers face increased stigma, are more at risk of violence, and are less able to call on the protection of the police and the authoritie as this can lead to police harassment, the loss of custody over children, or deportation.
For more information please see our briefing No Nordic Model
An ex-minister is calling for a law change to make paying for sex illegal Paying for sex should be made illegal and the laws on prostitution need reforming, a former Conservative Cabinet minister said. Caroline Spelman, who was Environment Secretary from 2010 to 2012, said she supported a Nordic model run in Sweden, Iceland […]
PEOPLE’S PARLIAMENT MEETING, HOUSE OF COMMONS. Stop the criminalisation of sex work – safety first! 26 March 2014
In a report published in March in the UK, MPs and peers argued that women working as prostitutes should no longer be criminalized, while their clients and pimps should be. In other words, buying sex would become illegal, but selling sex would no longer be a criminal offence. Mary Honeyball MEP is one of the […]
See video here. As sex workers from across Europe gather at the House of Commons to argue against proposals to criminalise their clients, Channel 4 News asks one woman what effect changing the law would have. The sex workers say proposals drawn up by the all-party parliamentary group on prostitution would not stop prostitution, but would […]
Sex Workers Response, Stop the Criminalisation of Sex Work – Safety First! Sex workers from a number of European countries including Sweden will be speaking in the House of Commons on Wednesday 26 March 2014. Where: Committee Room 12When: Wednesday 26 March, 6.30-8.30pmHosted by: John McDonnell MPOrganised by: English Collective of Prostitutes and the People’s […]
Tickets available for meeting here. The People’s Parliament check how many tickets are booked in case a bigger room is needed. But it isn’t essential to have a ticket, you can just turn up. Please allow 20 minutes to get through security at the House of Commons. You do NOT need ID to get into […]
This APPG Inquiry is not independent and was deeply biased from the start. Its remit was to: “develop proposals for government action with a focus on tackling demand for the sex trade.” Unsurprisingly therefore that the Inquiry’s conclusion is to recommend the blanket criminalisation of sex workers’ clients The Inquiry report contains fundamental inaccuracies. The […]
MPs and peers have this week been calling for reforms to Britain’s laws, which currently criminalise prostitution. An all-party parliamentary group on prostitution has urged Britain to follow the lead of countries such as Sweden and Norway, which make the purchase of sex illegal rather than targeting women who may have been coerced into selling their […]
Current laws prioritise ‘gratification of punters at expense of often vulnerable women and girls’, MP says British prostitution laws should be overhauled so that women selling sex are no longer criminalised but buying sex is against the law, a cross-party group of MPs said on Monday. In the first report of its kind for […]
CRIMINALISING CLIENTS UNDERMINES SEX WORKERS’ SAFETY & OTHER RIGHTS The English Collective of Prostitutes strongly oppose proposals being put forward today by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Prostitution to criminalise sex workers’ clients. Spokeswoman, Cari Mitchell, commented: “Criminalising clients will not stop prostitution, nor will it stop the criminalisation of women. But it will make […]