The purpose of amendments 1 to 11 is to introduce a new offence of purchasing sexual services, while decriminalising the sale of sex, and to require support services to be provided for those who wish to leave prostitution. Apart from amendments 2, 4 and 5, which are the three key amendments, the remainder of the amendments are consequential.
The market for prostitution in Scotland leads to people being trafficked to Scotland for sexual exploitation. That was recognised by the European Parliament in a resolution passed in February 2015, which
“Stresses that there are several links between prostitution and trafficking, and recognises that prostitution—both globally and across Europe—feeds the trafficking of vulnerable women and under-age females”.
The Scottish Government’s violence against women strategy, equally safe, recognises that commercial sexual exploitation, including prostitution, is violence against women. However, our laws penalise the victim rather than the perpetrator. That needs to be rectified.
Prostitution is often portrayed as a choice for women, but the vast majority of people in prostitution are poor and homeless, and they are often drug addicts. They have already suffered violence, abuse and neglect. For those in prostitution, it is often a means of survival rather than a choice. The amendments challenge the perception that prostitution is a choice. They also challenge the perception that men have a right to sex.
Although the committee has not taken evidence on the amendments, many organisations gave supporting evidence to the committee at stage 1. Those supportive organisations came from a wide range of perspectives, including a group of 15 academics, the Scottish Trades Union Congress, the Women’s Support Project, church groups and a collective of formerly prostituted women, as well as the trafficking awareness-raising alliance—TARA—which is the lead organisation on trafficking in Scotland.
Northern Ireland has recently passed similar legislation as part of the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Criminal Justice and Support for Victims) Act (Northern Ireland) 2015. I therefore believe that the amendments fall within the scope of the bill. Reducing the demand for paid sexual services, whether or not the person involved is trafficked, is an entirely legitimate aim for the bill and is in keeping with the bill’s full title—the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Bill.
Amendments 1, 2, 3, 6, 7 and 11 would make the purchasing of sexual services a criminal offence with sanctions. That is vital to challenging the demand for sexual exploitation. The amendments would ensure that those who create the demand are held to account for their actions.
Amendment 2, which would add section 4A, would make it an offence to pay, promise to pay or have a third party pay for sexual services. It would define a payment as “any financial advantage“ and ensure that there was a public education programme before the offence came into force.
Amendment 3 would add section 4B, to provide a review of the operation of section 4A. Amendments 1, 6, 7 and 11 are consequential.
Amendments 4 and 9 would decriminalise the individual providing the sexual service by repealing section 46 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982. Along with proposed section 4A(5), that would decriminalise victims of the offence. The amendments together would decriminalise victims.
Our laws are perverse—they penalise victims and ignore the perpetrators. Too often, those who have been sexually exploited are the ones who are criminalised. Having a criminal record stigmatises victims and makes it harder for them to exit. That needs to change. It is also important that victims know that they are not committing any offence, which enables them to access services and empowers them to have a positive relationship with the police and the wider public services that provide them with support. Amendment 9 is consequential to amendment 4.
The final amendments in the group are 5, 8 and 10. Amendment 5 would add section 8A, which would place a duty on the Scottish Government to provide exiting services for victims of sexual exploitation. It would also ensure that support and assistance were never conditional on co-operation with a criminal investigation. We need to ensure that victims of sexual exploitation are able to exit. Most individuals get involved in prostitution in order to survive. It is vital that we do not abandon victims without alternatives.
Academic evidence has shown that a large percentage of women would like to leave prostitution if they could. Creating support programmes to help people to exit prostitution is also part of the resolution from the European Parliament, which I will quote again. It
“Recognises that a vast majority of persons in prostitution would like to stop but feel unable to do so; stresses that these persons need appropriate support, particularly psychological and social assistance, to escape the sexual exploitation networks and the dependencies frequently associated with these; suggests, therefore, that the competent authorities put in place programmes to help persons escape prostitution, in close cooperation with the stakeholders”.
Victims often need extensive support to rebuild their lives, as evidence shows that they suffer wide-ranging physical and mental conditions because of their exploitation. The issues that tend to lead them into prostitution in the first place must also be dealt with. Amendments 8 and 10 are consequential to amendment 5.
I move amendment 1.