SCOTLAND'S kerb-crawling law will put prostitutes in even greater danger of attack unless immediate action is taken to help them leave the sex industry, a senior police officer warned yesterday.
Chief Inspector Brian Plastow, who is charge of policing Leith - the capital's main area for prostitution - said "simple enforcement" of the legislation would only increase the risks faced by vulnerable women who work the streets.
He said urgent action was needed to help women leave the world's oldest profession, and that police should adopt a "pragmatic" approach to enforcing the new law.
Officers have, until now, publicly welcomed the Prostitution (Public Places) Scotland Act, which came into force last week, but Mr Plastow's comments reflects serious concerns about the impact of the new law.
He spoke out as The Scotsman learned that two men had been charged with kerb-crawling since it became an offence last Monday. A 51-year-old man was charged after being stopped by police in the centre of Glasgow the day the legislation came into force, while a man of 62 was caught in the city's East End last Friday. Both will be reported to the procurator fiscal and each faces a fine up to £1,000.
Police, support workers and politicians are worried the new law will mean prostitutes working further away from the gaze of CCTV cameras and police officers, putting themselves in more dangerous situations. It is also feared they will be less cautious when stepping into a client's car.
Interview with George Lewis from sex workers' charity Scotpep
Assaults on prostitutes in Edinburgh rose sharply in the run-up to the new legislation as sex workers sought less public places to operate. Scotpep, which offers support to sex workers in city, recorded more than 60 attacks in the first six months of the year - compared with about 80 during the whole of 2006.
Mr Plastow said: "We will enforce the law but, equally, our primary focus is on assisting the women in routes out of prostitution rather than enforcement alone. The primary focus for police in Edinburgh is to support the council and groups like Scotpep to help women out of the sex industry.
"The last thing we want to do is expose the women to an even greater danger than they are already in through simple enforcement. That doesn't serve anyone's interests."
While the legislation was right in principle, he said police "will have to be very pragmatic in terms of how we enforce it".
Ruth Morgan Thomas, Scotpep's co-ordinator, said: "I really welcome the fact that an officer of this level is giving serious thought to the enforcement of this new legislation and the safety of these women.
"When similar legislation was introduced in England, violence went through the roof. They ended up with situations like the murders in Ipswich."
CLAMPDOWN ON CLIENTS
UNDER the Prostitution (Public Places) Scotland Act, anyone caught soliciting for sex from a prostitute, as well as those "loitering for the same purpose", will be fined up to £1,000 and given a criminal record.
The Scottish Government is also having talks with officials in Westminster over introducing powers to ban offenders from driving - currently available south of the Border - to courts in Scotland. In the past, the law has criminalised only those selling sex on the streets, unlike in England where kerb-crawling has been an offence for more than 20 years. Kenny MacAskill, the justice secretary, said the law will "no longer turn a blind eye" to those who fuel the sex trade.
