General Policing Issues

 

Douglas J Keil MBE QPM

General Secretary

Email: djkeil@scottishpolicefederation.org.uk

Mr Ronnie Fraser

Criminal Justice Division

Scottish Executive

1WR

St Andrew's House

Edinburgh

EH1 3DG

 

2 March 2005

 

Dear Mr Fraser

 

BEING OUTSIDE: CONSTRUCTING A RESPONSE TO STREET PROSTITUTION

REPORT OF THE EXPERT GROUP ON PROSTITUTION IN SCOTLAND

 

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the above Report.

 

The Scottish Police Federation (SPF) believes that prostitution is not currently seen as a policing priority. The fact that prostitution does not feature as a policing target or in performance indicators is evidence of this. Should prostitution become a priority then the police will either have to shift resources from some other priority or new resources will have to be found.

 

This response focuses on the proposed law changes and the impact they would have on the police. Before turning to those issues, in summary we support:

 

•  A national strategic framework

•  A local implementation plan in localities where there is a need

•  Address the imbalance between men and women arising from the present emphasis on the person soliciting without reference to the potential purchaser of sexual services

•  Seek to reduce stigma which attaches disproportionately to the person soliciting as against the potential purchaser

•  Minimise the use of imprisonment for women involved in prostitution

•  Ensure continued protection to vulnerable groups, including young people and vulnerable adult men and women from exploitation

•  Provide effective protection to the general public from offensive behaviour

•  Prevention, early intervention and support

 

Current Law

 

For some years the SPF has supported making kerb crawling an offence. In general, we support the thrust of the Report which seeks to equalise the impact of the law in this area between the seller and purchaser of sexual services. We also support all efforts by way of welfare and health support for prostitutes encouraging them to get out of prostitution.

 

The current law is neither simple nor widely understood. Although presently the law of Scotland does not make prostitution per se a criminal offence, the Civic Government ( Scotland ) Act 1982 criminalises soliciting in a public place for the purpose of prostitution. While the detail of this is unlikely to be understood by the general public we think there is a wide perception that prostitution is an illegal activity.

 

Potentially, the law stands to become even more complex as the UK has signed the 2 nd Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. This protocol and an EU Framework Decision (204/68/JHA) requires state parties to criminalise child prostitution. A child is defined as someone who is under 18 years old. In Scotland the law criminalises sexual relations with children under 16 and the Scottish Executive has decided that Scots law will have to change so that 16 and 17 year olds can no longer be involved in prostitution. While the SPF has no objections to these forthcoming UN and EU driven changes it will be recognised that this will leave the law very complex indeed.

 

Proposed Law Changes

 

The effect of the proposals in the Report would be to make lawful selling or buying sexual engagement where no alarm, offence or embarrassment is caused as a result. We have not ignored the subtleties of the Expert Group on Prostitution in Scotland (EGPS) Report but we believe this effectively legalises prostitution. We also note that despite proposals for ‘managed zones' prostitution without attendant alarm, offence or embarrassment would be legal anywhere in Scotland .

 

We do not support the legalisation of prostitution. We do not take this position on moral grounds but for reasons of general public safety, the safety of people involved in prostitution and the maintenance of good order as outlined below.

 

As stated above, the proposal would also make it unlawful to sell or buy sexual engagement where it caused alarm, offence or embarrassment and this would be seen as a public order offence rather than a sexual offence. As we have already said, we have long favoured making kerb crawling a criminal offence and we support a shift in the law which equalises the potential impact of the law on the seller and purchaser of sexual engagement. We support the EGPS Report in this regard and if it were accepted in this way it would negate the call for a kerb-crawling offence.

 

Our preferred law for the future

 

In the Report there are three options for change each of which would involve the repeal of Section 46 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (soliciting and importuning by prostitutes). The Report states that these options could be considered if it is accepted that the emphasis of law should be dealing with the behaviour termed soliciting and its associated features as a criminal offence only if alarm or offence can be shown to have been caused by it. We do not agree with that proviso and believe that options for change should be considered even where, as we do, it were believed that the selling or buying of sexual services should be an offence in any circumstances disregarding whether alarm or offence was caused as a result.

 

The SPF believes that the Scottish Law Commission's work should be examined. At Section 105 of its Draft Criminal Code, they proposed the following:

 

A person who, for the purposes of prostitution or of obtaining the services of a prostitute –

a)   loiters in a public place;

b)   solicits in a public place or in any other place so as to be seen from a public place; or

c)   importunes any person who is in a public place,

d)   in such circumstances as to be likely to cause fear; alarm or offence to others is guilty of the offence of soliciting.

 

The SPF believes this could be amended to read as follows:

 

A person who, for the purposes of prostitution or of obtaining the services of a prostitute –

a)   loiters in a public place or in any other place;

b)   solicits in a public place or in any other place; or

c)   importunes any person who is in a public place or in any other place is guilty of the offence of soliciting.

 

Effectively, this would make the selling or buying of sexual services an offence no matter where it occurred. The SPF believes that prostitution is exploitation of people with a range of problems that need every encouragement to get out of that lifestyle and while we believe it should remain an offence for the prostitute we are fully supportive of penalties for such offences by prostitutes being heavily focused on welfare services with that aim.

Prostitution is a demand and supply business. By dealing with prostitutes in away which aims to get them out of the business then hopefully we can limit the supply. By dealing with those who seek to buy sexual services in a punitive way we could hopefully limit the demand.

 

We would also like a power of arrest attached to this offence.

 

Managed Zones

 

It follows from the above that we do not support ‘managed zones'. There would be a number of problems with managed zones. Firstly, because managed zones would be ‘policed' by health, welfare and police services they would attract some prostitutes from outwith the area who are likely to bring with them pimps, thieves, drug dealers and potentially even people traffickers.

 

Secondly, we believe that by making prostitution legal (and in some eyes safer as a result) it might make it an easier career choice for people who would not otherwise have made that choice. We appreciate that it is questionable whether any prostitute completely freely chooses to engage in this activity but ultimately there is an element of choice no matter what attendant pressures there might be and the question of whether the activity is legal or not must feature to some extent for at least some prostitutes. In this way we feel that by making prostitution legal it may in fact increase the number of people working in the sex industry. Equally, legalising prostitution could increase the numbers of people seeking to buy sexual services. Currently, the financial incentives far outweigh the risk of arrest and penalty but these proposals would totally eradicate that disincentive. We do not believe anyone desires such outcomes.

 

Thirdly, we also believe that while some prostitutes would be attracted by a managed zone, others would choose to operate elsewhere, either precisely because it was managed or to service clients who were not prepared to be subject to the scrutiny of a managed zone.

 

Fourthly, no matter which area was chosen to become a managed area we believe there would be significant levels of objection from business owners and residents in nearby areas. Communities as well as individuals can be victims of prostitution. The experience in Amsterdam, where they have closed their street prostitution zone, was that it attracted a wide range of criminals from far and near who did not confine their illegal activities to it's ‘managed zone'.

 

Finally, we make no apology for returning to the question of resources. Should the proposals in the EGPS Report be adopted there will be a requirement for all agencies to have sufficient resources. The Report recommends a high level of interagency co-operation and this will only be possible if each service is adequately resourced.

 

In relation to the police, all new duties and new laws increase costs. Training, guidance, increased police activity in monitoring, increased recording and investigating complaints, increased reports to the Procurator Fiscal, increased time spent in court and increased monitoring of offenders all increase costs.

 

I trust you will find these comments of interest.

 

Yours sincerely

 

 

 

General Secretary