Policing and Crime Bill second reading

The Policing and Crime Bill, which amends the law on prostitution, receives its second reading on Monday 19^th January. MPs in the House of Commons will debate the Bill, which includes measures to reduce prostitution and related instances of trafficking in the UK.

Clause 13   Clause 13, which introduces an offence of paying for the services of a person who is ‘controlled for gain’ is a key element of the Government’s strategy to tackle the demand for exploitative services.

The clause introduces an offence for the promise of payment, regardless of whether the service is provided or where in the world the services are to be provided. The offence is a strict liability offence which therefore means that the offence stands, regardless of whether or not the person purchasing the service is aware that the individual was being controlled for gain.

Controlling prostitution for gain was made an offence in section 53 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. A person commits an offence if he ‘intentionally controls any activities of another person' – related to their involvement in prostitution.

The Bill also gives greater powers to police to close commercial premises where sexual exploitation (as laid out in the Sexual Offences Act) takes place. The Bill also makes kerb crawling a first time offence.