Jail threat for paying for sex
Harriet Harman said ministers would consider a ban on paying for sex
Thursday, 20, Dec 2007 08:08
A ban on paying for sex could become law in Britain, Commons leader Harriet Harman said today.
Ms Harman, who is also the minister for women, said the move would seek to bring an end to what is effectively a "lawful sex trade".
It is currently not illegal to buy or sell sex, but there are bans on other related activities including kerb-crawling and running a brothel.
Speaking on the Today programme, Ms Harman said Home Office ministers would be travelling to Sweden and the Netherlands to liaise with counterparts about greater curbs on prostitution.
Her comments come ahead of an anticipated ban on classified advertisements of girls in newspapers at the start of the new year.
"It is right that they should not be being advertised," the minister said.
"I think the new guidance… will stop the ads in local papers, but the next question is can we really stop this trade when we still have a lawful sex trade going on?"
Ms Harman added: "That is why our ministers Vernon Coaker and Barbara Follett are going to Amsterdam and to Sweden to look at how other countries are tackling it."
"In Sweden they have decided the only way to stop the international human trafficking is to ban the sex trade altogether and make it unlawful for men to pay for sex."