SNP ‘is too moralistic’ towards prostitutes

THE Scottish Government has been accused of adopting a ‘harmful moralistic view’ in its approach to prostitution.

Umbrella Lane, a group which supports more than 150 sex workers in Scotland, said its members oppose any move to criminalise the buying of sex – warning this could pressure them into seeing ‘dangerous clients’.

It comes after two women who describe themselves as ‘survivors of prostitution’ addressed the Scottish parliament’s crossparty group on sexual exploitation, calling for the buying of sex to be made an offence.

But Anastacia Ryan, t he founder of Umbrella Lane, said ministers needed to instead ‘ prioritise safety, health and harm reduction’. She added:

‘Outdated ideology’

‘Despite leading the way on progressive measures in other areas of women’s rights, the Government agenda on prostitution is driven by an outdated ideology and a harmful moralistic view that fails to reflect the realities of sex workers’ lives and associated needs from services.

‘We have an opportunity in Scotland to create policy and laws in this area that prioritise safety, health and harm reduction, showing sex workers that their lives matter.’

The Scottish Government is consulting on whether its approach to tackling prostitution is sufficient to prevent violence against women and girls.

Countries such as Sweden, France, Norway, Ireland, Iceland and Israel have already criminalised paying for sex in a bid to reduce demand for prostitution.