Policing and Crime Bill

My Lords, with this amendment, we move to Part 2 of the Bill, on sex offences and sex establishments, and prostitution in particular. Clauses 14 and 15 have presented the most difficult issues. We also found that to be the case in Committee. I appreciated very much the letter of 2 November from the noble and learned Baroness, Lady Scotland, as I did her usual clarity of position and her recognition of the fact that there are arguments for different approaches. She said that the Government’s position is clear. However, I think that tussling with the different positions has been very difficult for everybody. Since Committee there has been a considerable amount more evidence—letters, e-mails and testimonies. As Liberal Democrats we believe—and, as a woman, I believe—that there should be zero tolerance of coercion, violence or sexual abuse towards anybody working in the sex industry. Those who have been trafficked into this country and forced to work in the industry against their will should expect and receive full protection under the law. I am not speaking to defend men who buy sex. I am moving this amendment in response to concerns about the effect that this legislation will have on some of the most vulnerable women in our society, and that was very much the tenor of our debate in Committee. The Government explained the strict liability aspect of the offence, saying that it was likely to have the effect of reducing demand. The evidence on that issue and how it has been approached by other places in the world has also formed part of our thinking in retabling these amendments. Those who support Clause 14 say that making men criminally liable for, ""Paying for sexual services of a prostitute subjected to force"," will drastically reduce the demand for such services and reduce the incentive for traffickers to traffic women. That belief contains two assumptions that I do not believe are correct: first, that most prostitutes are trafficked women; and secondly and more importantly, that this legislation will make that trade lessen and disappear by further criminalising the sexual services trade. The supporters of the Bill do not accept that it will drive the trade underground and endanger the very vulnerable women that they seek to protect. If I believed that the Government’s assumptions were true I would support Clause 14. However, I have looked carefully at the evidence and it does not support those two assumptions. First, there is the evidence on trafficking, which we have had a lot more of since debating this in Committee. The Home Office figures on the number of people working in the sex trade who have been trafficked have themselves been widely challenged. That was no surprise to us because we quoted in Committee the work that was just being published by Dr Mai and that had been funded by the ESRC. The Guardian report of 20 October also produced many more questions about the veracity of the Home Office figures. Be that as it may, let us suppose for a moment that the Home Office is right about the figures. The next question to answer is whether as a result of the provisions the sex trade will disappear, or whether it will continue to exist but as a less dangerous place for women to work. There is lots of evidence on that from countries all over the world, including the US, which, with the exception of one or two states, has a highly criminalised system. For us, however, the most persuasive evidence came from those who work with women in the sex trade and those who work with the women themselves. I want to share with the House some of what I have heard since we debated this in Committee. As far as those who are trying to improve the life of women in the sex trade are concerned, I shall simply cite, for instance, Georgina Perry from the Open Doors project in the East End of London. This project has been going since 1993, and it sees about 1,200 women a year who work in indoor sex and about 300 who work on the streets. Many are migrant women. They do not believe that the percentage of those who are trafficked is significant at all, but that the women who they work with are there because of economics, not force. They believe that it is essential to tackle health issues, first and foremost, and to support the women. They are deeply worried by these clauses. In theory, many academics who have studied these issues for years and years are, equally, deeply against the Bill—I am sure that Ministers are aware of their names. Perhaps most persuasive are those who see the really terrible side. Women Against Rape are also deeply worried by these clauses. When we debated the provisions in Committee, the Government stated that this new offence, ""is distinct from rape because there is no requirement to show that the defendant knew or ought to have known that the prostitute was threatened or deceived".—[Official Report, 01/7/09; col. 278.]" As these provisions introduce a lower tariff, there will be a temptation to prosecute under them even in cases where prosecutions should be directed at the offence of rape. It is extremely rare to successfully convict someone of rape, particularly in such cases. However, the most persuasive case for my amendment is made by the women themselves through the English Collective of Prostitutes and the International Union of Sex Workers. I am aware that supporters of Clause 14 are somewhat dismissive of these women’s comments and claim that they often represent the views of pimps and exploiters. However, that is not the case with the women I have met who have attended many meetings in Parliament. These women are very fearful that the trade will be driven underground. We need to look again at the evidence from the JCHR, which made its case forcefully. It referred to the likelihood of the measure having unintended consequences, including driving prostitution further underground and increasing the vulnerability of prostitutes. I do not think that the Government have provided new evidence to assuage the JCHR’s fears. The Joint Committee further stated that legislation should be firmly based on evidence. It considered that it was particularly important when new criminal offences were proposed to show why the existing criminal law was inadequate to deal with the targeted conduct and how the proposed new offence tackled the behaviour in a proportionate way. In the committee’s view that was even more imperative when the proposed new offence was one of strict liability. My noble friend Lord Thomas of Gresford will expand on that. This matter was fully debated in the Commons, where some improvements were made to Clause 14. However, we are still left with the necessity of dealing appropriately and effectively with trafficking and rape. Given the many problems associated with the proposed new offence, we believe that the relevant clauses should be removed from the Bill and that the Government should instead consult on the creation of any new offence. I am sure the Minister will mention that consultation began with Paying the Price and that this measure is the end result. I believe absolutely in her sincerity in promoting her case, given her record on domestic violence, on which she has worked very hard. However, in this instance I am deeply worried that the Government are pursuing a line that will increase these women’s vulnerability and will not solve the problem. We should be looking at better enforcement of existing law rather than creating this new offence. I beg to move.