Ash Regan’s proposed crackdown on the purchase of sex has come under fire, after fresh research from the Scottish Government suggested it would do little to stop trafficking or exploitation.
The report, quietly released last week, found that measures like criminalising clients, a key feature of Regan’s Nordic Model Bill, may have limited impact on the harm it’s meant to prevent.
Officials had reviewed evidence from across the globe and were clear in their findings.
There are serious gaps in proof that such laws reduce trafficking or exploitation.
Instead, the research suggests these policies risk missing the mark entirely, punishing those already vulnerable while doing little to tackle the root of the problem.
Siobhian Brown, the Minister for Victims and Community Safety, didn’t mince her words either.
In a letter to Holyrood’s Criminal Justice Committee, she raised significant questions and concerns about how Regan’s proposals would work in practice.
Brown pointed to the troubled international record of similar laws and said the cost estimates behind the Bill didn’t add up.
Campaigners who work closely with sex workers say this should be a turning point.
Lynsey Walton, head of the UK-wide charity National Ugly Mugs, welcomed the Government’s findings.
She says criminalising clients has never helped to stop exploitation and instead makes life more dangerous by forcing sex work further underground.
“This is about safety, dignity and rights,” she said.
“Sex workers deserve laws that protect them, not policies that put them at greater risk.”
The Scottish research echoes what has already been seen in Ireland and Northern Ireland, where buying sex is a criminal offence.
In both cases, independent reviews found no real drop in demand.
Northern Ireland’s review found sex workers felt more marginalised and at risk, while Ireland reported just 15 convictions in seven years, with no decrease in the number of people buying sex.
As lawmakers weigh the future of Regan’s Bill, they’re now being urged to take this new evidence seriously.
Rather than repeat the mistakes of other countries, campaigners are calling for a different approach, one rooted in support, safety and respect.
For many in Scotland’s sex work community, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
This debate is no longer just about policy.
It’s about people’s lives.
