In England and Wales, it is not illegal to buy or sell sex, but it is against the law to operate a brothel. Sandy’s Superstars, just to reiterate, was situated on a busy shopping thoroughfare, not the back alleyways, with ‘house charges of £50 for 30 minutes and £100 for an hour’. Still, police decided to do nothing.
Or, to be more precise, they came to an agreement with Mrs Hankin that she could continue as long she never used underage girls or trafficked women, and her activities weren’t used as a front for other crime; she kept her side of the bargain as far as the authorities were concerned.
Her prostitutes had regular NHS health checks. Her bouncers were accredited by the Home Office-approved Security Industry Authority. Council officials carried out regular checks. Her business even paid tax and was visited by inspectors from tax authority HMRC — in other words, Sandy’s Superstars was really a licensed brothel in all but name.But this is just an exception, surely?
The pragmatic policy, pursued by Greater Manchester Police, has been quietly adopted across the country.
Indeed, the latest guidance from the National Police Chiefs’ Council states: ‘Brothel closures and raids create a mistrust of all external agencies . . . it is difficult to rebuild trust and ultimately reduces the amount of intelligence submitted to the police and puts sex workers at greater risk.’Isn't it to be expected that criminals mistrust the law enforcers? Say, perhaps, even encouraged?
What a strange modern world we live in, eh?
"What a strange modern world we live in, eh?"
ReplyDeleteBonkers...
Prostitution is quite legal in this country.
ReplyDeleteWhat isn't legal is:
Loitering for the purpose of prostitution;
Soliciting for the purpose of prostitution;
Using premises for the purpose of prostitution;
Living wholely or partly on the proceeds of prostitution.
Doncha just lurve lawyers and lawmakers.
Seems strange to me that what people do behind closed doors with their clothes of is anything to do with anybody else.
ReplyDeleteHomosexuality was illegal but now isn't.
One person freely having sex with another for money seem pretty similar to me.
It makes sense to me for prostitution to be legal. I do have a problem with such matters being decided by the police by them deciding which laws they enforce and which laws they don't.
ReplyDeleteOne might be tempted to suggest that the fuzz were erring on the side of least effort and least paperwork . . . .
ReplyDeleteIf the owner of the property, and the girls, are paying taxes, does this mean that the Police, the local authority, and politicians are all living off the proceeds of immoral earnings? In at least one of those cases, there's no surprise there.
ReplyDeletePenseivat
"Doncha just lurve lawyers and lawmakers."
ReplyDeleteI suppose the alternative - Somalia-type societies - is even worse. Just.
"One person freely having sex with another for money seem pretty similar to me."
It's obviously different. Because reasons.
"I do have a problem with such matters being decided by the police by them deciding which laws they enforce and which laws they don't."
Something they seem to do far too much, lately...
"...erring on the side of least effort and least paperwork . . "
Perish the thought!
"...does this mean that the Police, the local authority, and politicians are all living off the proceeds of immoral earnings?"
*fetches popcorn*