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Survey finds public support criminalising prostitution

04/09/2008

The public will support a ban on prostitution if it stems the flow of trafficked women, a new government-commissioned survey has revealed.

Its findings make the eventual criminalisation of prostitution in Britain more likely.

The Home Office has been conducting a review of prostitution laws for several months, visiting countries like Holland, where the profession is legalised, and Sweden, where buying sex is banned, before seeing what changes might be made to British law.

Vernon Coaker, home office minister, is understood to be sympathetic to full-scale criminalisation if there are signs of national consensus.

Harriet Harman, minister for equality and long-time campaigner for women's rights, supports criminalisation and has support from Vera Baird, solicitor general and Lady Scotland, attorney general.

The issue of criminalisation has divided analysts of the sex industry for decades. Opponents say it drives sex workers underground, putting vulnerable women in even more danger. Supporters say it acts as a buffer against human trafficking and sends a strong moral message.

The government survey, conducted by Ipsos/Mori, shows substantial disparities between men's and women's views of prostitution.

While 61 per cent of women thought buying sex was unacceptable, only 42 per cent of men agreed with them.

However, if when men were asked if they would accept a female relative selling sex, 60 per cent said no.

Interestingly, the younger the respondent the more likely they were to find it unacceptable.

"Our survey suggests that there are double standards out there: the overwhelming majority of those people who said they thought selling sex was a reasonable choice also said they would find it unacceptable if a family member was working as a prostitute," Ms Harman said.

"We know that paying for sex fuels the demand for trafficked women and children, but we can't talk about tackling demand without challenging cultural attitudes more widely."