MSP's bill to aid victims trapped in prostitution

Scotland is on track to change prostitution laws to prosecute punters who pay for sex and criminalise those who profit.

Alba MSP Ash Regan’s Prostitution Bill has gathered more than enough cross-party support for her “unbuyable” prostitution Bill to reach the next stage and possibly become law by next year.

The politician is delighted that more than a decade after Scotland first started talking about changing the law to adopt what is known as the Nordic Approach, it is finally moving in the “right direction”.

She said: “Getting cross-party support from so many other MSPs shows Scotland is determined to finally face this challenge and do something that will protect victims and change lives for the better.

“Other politicians have tried before, but nobody else has managed to reach this stage. I’m delighted that at least 18 colleagues from other major parties are supporting me to get this Bill through parliament.”

Regan is pushing for a raft of care and support to be made available to those trapped in prostitution, either through addiction or poverty.

She is calling for previous convictions linked to prostitution to be scrubbed so victims can rebuild their lives, seek education or training and have improved chances of employment to lift them out of the destructive sex industry.

And she is deeply concerned over the rising number of women being trafficked into Scotland by organised crime gangs from overseas.

She said: “People might think that these stories only happen in the movies.

“But these horror stories are happening on our streets, right now.

“I have been working closely with organisations who support trafficked women, and they tell me this is a growing problem in Scotland.

“I’ve been told of women being trafficked from Albania. Women going home from their work, lifted off the streets and brought here to work in the sex industry. I’ve heard of women being kidnapped from their homes to pay off a family debt.

“And there is a network of gangs operating what is known as the ‘lover boy’ method where a man targets a vulnerable woman who thinks she is in a relationship with him. Before she realises what is happening, she is isolated and pushed into prostitution to make money for crime gangs.”

The online sex workers helping cops snare human traffickers operating in Scotland

Police Scotland’s specialist sex crimes and anti-trafficking officers have successfully rescued women, and high-profile prosecutions have seen perpetrators jailed.

Regan’s work on prostitution has been lauded by Reem Asalem, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls.

Over 75% of trafficking victims are advertised for sex on online advertising platforms.

Last week we revealed that Police Scotland’s Detective Superintendent Steve Bertram found over 1,800 online ads offering women up for sex in a single day.

Ash Regan said: “How can ordering sex now be like ordering a pizza?

“How can we possibly ignore this abomination in 2024 and fail those who bear the consequences of being caught up in the sex industry?

“If we don’t challenge the demand, as Sweden did 25 years ago, then we are accepting that normalising the commodification of human beings and all the harm that flows from that.

“Scotland is much better than that.

“We need to show that our parliament can show the world how we set the tone for our society by tackling the harmful attitudes underpinning male violence against women and make a real difference when it matters.”

Regan praised female politicians such as Labour’s Rhoda Grant who have tried to effect change.

She said: “I am grateful for all the work they did in the past, and I am saddened that their efforts were not successful at that time. I hope that today attitudes have changed so much, and people are understanding more about this despicable business.

“This is an issue that goes beyond party politics, and I am delighted to have secured cross-party support and feel confident of success as we move forward with the Bill.”

The next stage of the Bill will be to present the draft to the Scottish parliament.

If accepted, the new legislation could be in place early next year.