Press Release

Supporting trans people means supporting sex work decriminalisation

November 20, 2021

This Trans Day of Remembrance LGBTQI+ organisations must stand with the Sex Workers Alliance of Ireland (SWAI) when we call for the full decriminalisation of sex work. Any alternative is putting the health and safety of trans people at risk.

Aoife Bloom, board member of SWAI says “Today, on Trans Day of Remembrance 2021 we demand that society acknowledges how the majority of trans people who were killed in 2021 were trans sex workers.

2021 is a record-breaking year for violence against trans people. 375 gender diverse people were murdered and the majority of those murdered were black and migrant. Over half of those murdered were sex workers. When we talk about transphobic violence and Trans Day of Remembrance we’re usually talking about trans sex workers of colour.”

She continues “Here in Ireland, trans sex workers are often the victims of the spate of violence that occurred directly after the law changed in 2017. Liam Vickers preyed on a vulnerable trans woman and was enabled by our recently changed laws. The change in law created an environment wherein our vulnerability was highlighted in the media, without providing any new protections for us whatsoever. The law increased criminalisation of people co-working, under “brothel-keeping” legislation, distancing us from authorities, and also forcing us to work alone if we were trying to work within legal parameters. Since the law changed in 2017 we have seen a 92% increase in violent crimes against us.

Recent research by the European Sex Worker Alliance (ESWA) highlights that 83% of sex workers surveys felt that transphobia had a detrimental effect on their mental health. Trans people are over represented in the sex work community because they are marginsalised and unable to find other work. Sex work is an economic activity, after all.

Our current model of client criminalisation does not respond to the circumstances of deep poverty, domestic violence, homelessness, precarity and drug use that may lead to people selling sex. Sex workers exist on the sharp end of misogyny, racism, transphobia and other forms of marginalisation. Sex workers must work alone to work legally which increases our vulnerability.

How long more can government, health authorities, and gender equality bodies here ignore the growing body of evidence that shows that their policies are damaging and endangering to the physical and mental health of this precarious group of people?

SWAI demands that organisations that claim to support trans people start to advocate and agitate for the full decriminalisation of sex work. Decriminalisation is essential for combating trans marginalisation and HIV rates, building trust with marginalised communities and providing access to sexual health supports. You cannot be pro LGBT rights without being pro-sex worker rights.”

Press Release: For Woman Charged with Facilitation of Prostitution, Sex Workers Alliance Ireland Demands Court Obey Deportation Moratorium

January 27, 2021

Decrim for SAfety Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) demands that the courts obey the blanket ban on deportations reinstated by the Taoiseach since Level 5 Covid restrictions began.

A 32-year-old Polish native with an 11-month old son was handed down a suspended sentence yesterday in Waterford court for facilitating prostitution. She was given the choice of a 1 year prison sentence in Ireland or leaving the Republic within the next 14 days, with a promise to not return for 5 years. Her resultant departure from Ireland – whilst not officially a deportation – flies in the face of the health advice that led the Taoiseach to reinstate the deportation moratorium.

The judge incorrectly stated that “the sale of sex is a crime”. He, however, acknowledged that no one involved had been coerced and that the sex work was an economic activity. Notably, there was mention of a man present whom it was believed the women in the apartment were “fearful” of, yet it was the new mother herself who was faced with any charge. The judge also mentioned that “Society has to be protected from this sort of behaviour” harkening back to an old Ireland where stigma and shame of sexuality subjugated women.

This is another case where the brunt of the so-called brothel-keeping laws are born by migrant sex workers, as highlighted by the brothel-keepers research. The brothel-keeping law means that even two workers working together for safety are working illegally which increases our precarity.

Kate McGrew, sex worker and director Sex Workers Alliance Ireland, stated: “We advocate for a decriminalised sex industry in order that sex workers can avail of safe and vetted work environments. It is due to the current criminalization, direct and by proxy, that sex workers are forced onto a black market where criminals are poised to take advantage of our lack of options.”

She continues: “Where we are concerned about the well-being of those in the sex industry, we must acknowledge that our ability to make safe decisions is curtailed by this criminal law.”

Press release: Ireland is a safer place thanks to sex workers coming forward

June 26, 2020

We deserve to be safe image “When sex workers work together with Gardaí we can make society better,” says Kate McGrew, current sex worker and director of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) commenting on two court cases involving attacks on sex workers which were reported on today.

She continues “In the case in Tralee the judge warned the accused to not contact any sex workers. Was this warning extended to sex workers in the area? There are currently at least 13 workers working in Kerry who may in danger. As the only frontline, sex worker-led organisation in Ireland we could be a help to the Gardaí in warning workers about this predator.

We were pleased to see the prosecution of Ioan Galben today. It is all too rare for a sex worker’s report to be taken seriously enough to lead to a conviction. Violent crime against sex work has risen by 92% since the purchase of sex was criminalised while the likelihood of sex workers reporting to Gardaí has fallen. We want to emphasise the bravery of the workers in both these cases for coming forward, against the odds.

The reality in Ireland is that sex workers want to work with Gardaí. Criminalising parts of sex work such as the purchase of sex distances us from Gardaí, thereby losing us as the best-placed actors on the ground in the fight against trafficking, exploitation and violence. Nobody wants a safer industry more than sex workers ourselves.

Sex work must be decriminalised to make us safer. Instead, people already on the margins, who do sex work as the best or only option to survive are forced to do so on a black market, where exploiters are poised ready to take advantage of our lack of options. In this quasi-illegal environment, these people offer us assistance and can exploit or abuse us, knowing we are unlikely to report.

This criminal law was passed without listening to what sex workers ourselves need to make our lives better. The government needs to offer viable alternatives for income so that those who do not want to do sex work can work elsewhere. During the pandemic, we created a hardship fund to ensure that sex workers were taken care of, instead of falling through the cracks, which raised over €25,000. Currently, we can only rely on ourselves and our community to keep us safe. The next government needs to decriminalize our work, name and officially recognise us in society, so that next time there is a pandemic, recession, or climate crisis, this population will not be left to face risking our health or experience deeper precarity, as we have during this time.”

Press Release: Sex workers need supports too says Sex Workers Alliance Ireland

March 23, 2020

Stethoscope Kate McGrew current sex worker, director of The Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) and co-convenor of the European Network for Sex Workers’ Rights (ICRSE) is calling for the Irish government to urgently act to ensure that sex workers, along with their families and communities, can access social protections during the COVID-19 pandemic. She says “As more countries impose lockdowns, self-isolation and travel restrictions many sex workers will lose most, or all, of their income and face financial hardship, increased vulnerability, destitution or homelessness. The clandestine nature of sex work also means that many will be unable to access the safeguards provided for other workers, such as sick pay.”

She continues “Many sex workers come from communities that already face high levels of marginalisation and social exclusion including women living in poverty, migrants and refugees, trans people and drug users. Sex workers who are the primary earners in their families, or who don’t have alternative means of support are at risk of being forced into more precarious and dangerous situations to survive.

Sex workers in Ireland are already reporting:

Drastic loss of income
Closure of workplaces
Lack of funds to pay for basic needs, support family members and dependents
Inability to access community health services which have shut down or decreased their activities
Increased pressure to take risks while working in order to secure income

This pandemic is revealing, with extreme urgency, the ways in which sex workers are forced to operate on the margins, in precarious circumstances, without the protections enjoyed by other workers.

SWAI and ICRSE support efforts by governments to control transmissions of the virus. However, public health measures that do not consider the circumstances of the most marginalized groups put their overall success at risk. In providing emergency measures and relief, governments must ensure that they reach workers who are excluded from the formal economy.

As minimum governments must urgently provide:

Immediate, appropriate and easy-to-access financial support for sex workers in crisis,
Emergency housing for homeless sex workers
A firewall between immigration authorities and health services
Access to health care for all sex workers, irrespective of their immigration status

All measures related to sex work must be based on public health and human rights principles and be developed in consultation with sex workers and their organisations to limit their negative impact. This unprecedented crisis calls for meaningful collaboration between all sectors of society, including those most marginalized. Only by involving sex workers do governments stand a chance to limit the pandemic and eventually end it.

To mitigate the harm of the pandemic on sex workers we have set up a hardship crowdfund. Sex work is work and sex workers like many precarious workers have been affected by Covid-19. This money will go directly into the hands of sex workers through individual emergency payments. Here is the link: https://swai-hardship-fund.causevox.com/.

Sex workers are not the problem, we are part of the solution”

#DecrimforSafety #SupportSafeSexWork

Press release: Sentence of rapist shows all-too-rare justice for sex workers possible

March 18, 2020

We want to work with Gardaí so that crimes like these can come to justice

On Monday Nolan Keown was sentenced to 14 years in prison after attacking, sexually assaulting and robbing two sex workers in 2016 and 2018.

Kate McGrew, director of SWAI and current sex worker sais “These attacks occurred before and after the sex purchase law, we need to reiterate that this law does not deter men who know their behaviour is already criminal. A sex purchase ban does nothing to deter people who were already willing to break the law with actual violence. The law only gives these egregious humans more cover and brazenness to do so, as they know that workers are unfortunately less likely to engage with Gardai under this law.”

She continues “However we are very grateful for the work of An Garda Schoicana. We know that we can work together to keep perpetrators not only out of our industry and community but off the streets.

The law was introduced with great fanfare but what it has resulted in is a 92% increase in violence against sex workers. In this instance, the change in the law did not deter Mr Keown from his violent acts as the occurred before and after the law.

We are willing to and encouraging of all sex workers to work with Gardai to make Ireland safer for everyone. But the evidence shows that many more sex workers working together for safety have been arrested under our so-called brothel-keeping laws than criminals who have attacked sex workers. Last year two migrant women were prosecuted for working together for safety, one of which was pregnant. Trust in Gardaí has dropped to less than 1% since the introduction of new penalties for working together for safety.

Sex workers are not legally allowed to work together for safety. Attackers know that if workers are working together it is considered a brothel. Sex workers who work together are very unlikely to report to the Gardaí because they fear arrest. If a sex worker works alone this can make her more vulnerable to attacks. Sex workers working alone are reluctant to report to the Gardai because they fear that Gardaí will surveil them looking for their clients, or they won’t be believed. Criminals know this and target both workers alone or together.

We ask the government to make this work between sex workers and Gardai more realistic and effective by abandoning the law that works against these important efforts. Currently, Gardai efforts are forced by law to focus on policing and raids when their role with us should only be one of protection. We call for full decriminalisation of sex work as it has proven in New Zealand and Australia to vastly improve relationships between sex workers and police. We all deserve to be safe.

#DecrimforSafety #SupportSafeSexWork

Press release: New liaison officers and dedicated email address show the PSNI are taking sex workers safety seriously

March 6, 2020

Kate McGrew, current sex worker and director of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland said “Yesterday, Thursday 5 March, a private meeting was held between the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI), The Rainbow Project, UglyMugs.ie and sex workers. It was a constructive meeting and was well-attended by sex workers of many different backgrounds working in Northern Ireland.”

She continued “PSNI Sex Work Liaison Officers (SWLOs) were introduced in 2015, following the advocacy work of Laura Lee. At this meeting it was announced that the number of PSNI Sex Work Liaison Officers (SWLOs) has now been increased from two officers to six officers and there is also now a new dedicated contact email address for the SWLOs – zSWLO@psni.pnn.police.uk.”

Detective Chief Superintendent Paula Hilman, Head of PSNI’s Public Protection Branch opened the meeting speaking directly to sex workers and saying: “It is not for us to judge, discriminate against anyone, from whatever background, whatever work they do. Our role is to keep everyone safe and that includes you in the room here with us this evening.”

At the meeting the PSNI, SWAI, UglyMugs.ie and the Rainbow Project all spoke about what each organisation is doing to improve the safety and well-being of people in sex work. A representative from The Rowan, Northern Ireland’s regional Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC), also spoke about their services and their sex worker friendly approach.

Kate also stated “This meeting provided an important opportunity for sex workers to provide feedback to the PSNI and for everyone present to recommit to working in partnership on an ongoing basis. For reasons of privacy, we will not be publicly detailing the discussions that took place. However, SWAI is very pleased that the PSNI want to listen to and support sex workers.

A more detailed update following the meeting will be circulated to sex workers only next week. The Rainbow Project are also now organising monthly sex worker only meetups, on the first Tuesday of every month. If you are doing sex work in Northern Ireland, please know that there is sex worker friendly support available to you, including the sex worker led work that SWAI does in Northern Ireland. We are here for you.

Prior to the event, SWAI and Reclaim the Night came together to temporarily re-name Queens Square ‘Laura Lee Square’ in honour of all our much loved and missed colleague, Laura Lee.”

#DecrimforSafety #SupportSafeSexWork

Press statement: Public’s support of sex workers is not reflected in Ireland’s laws and policies

March 2, 2020

Today SWAI marks it’s 10 year anniversary and reflects over the work we have done and the work we need to do.

Kate McGrew, current sex worker and director of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) says “Since its inception in 2009 SWAI have sought to bring an alternative voice to the discussion around sex work. The dominant narrative then and now has conflated sex trafficking, human trafficking and human smuggling with consensual sex work. We give voice to the real experiences of currently working sex workers because we ARE currently working sex workers. This voice has been sorely lacking in Irish society.”

She continues “Since 2009 we have grown, taken on staff, have a majority sex working board and hired a sex worker as a director. This means that the lived experiences and voices of currently working sex workers permeate every aspect of our work. We have direct contact with hundreds of sex workers each year and we provide non-judgemental advice on many subjects such as housing and health, provided paths to justice and signposted services. We have helped workers gain refugee status and guided some through the justice system, resulting in a 20-year sentence for a serial rapist.

Since 2009 this country has gone through a recession which we are slowly climbing out of, and it has undergone a sea-change in social change, with same-sex marriage, gender recognition and abortion access being legalised.

Unfortunately, since 2009 client criminalisation has been introduced in Ireland which has a detrimental effect on the safety of workers here. It was brought in with great fanfare but none of the promises that were made has come to pass and in fact, we have seen a 92% increase in violent crime against us. Trust in the Gardaí amongst sex workers has fallen even further. This month alone we have seen a spate of attacks nationwide. We warned that this would happen but we were not listened to.

Sex workers want to work together for safety but the laws in 2017 changed to increase fines for so-called brothel-keeping and added a jail sentence. In June of this year, our worst fears were realised when two migrant workers, one of whom is pregnant, were sentenced to jail for the crime of working together for safety. The judge acknowledged that they were not coerced into this work and there were no bosses, pimps, traffickers or clients involved.

Since the law was introduced only a fraction of the arrests have been of clients. Sex workers bear both the legal brunt and the burden of navigating this law with clients who are potentially more dangerous and much more concerned for their own safety than that of the worker.

In the 10 years since SWAI has started our organisation has gone from strength to strength. We have succeeded in adding a different voice to the sex work discourse and given a voice to this hidden population. In the 2020 review of the law, we must be listened to as the experts in what is best for sex workers.

To mark our 10 years we are re-launching our website https://sexworkersallianceireland.org/. Through it we provide easy to understand information about sex workers rights, support after sexual assault and budgeting and money management. It will also provide up to date news and our press releases.

#DecrimforSafety #SupportSafeSexWork

Press release: Attacks, robberies, rapes and assaults on workers in 2019 all caused by sex working laws

December 17, 2019

IDEVASW image Today is International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Sex Workers. Safety and a life free from violence is everyone’s right. But sex workers are put in danger because of our laws and the stigma surrounding sex work.

Catriona, current sex worker and chairperson of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) said “Since the sex work laws changed in 2017 the lives, health and safety of sex workers have been put in danger. Here are the facts.

Violence against sex workers increased by 92%.
Sex workers have less trust in the Gardaí than ever and less than 1% will contact the Gardaí if they are a victim of a crime
Young migrant women bear the brunt of the so-called brothel-keeping laws, not pimps or traffickers
Gardaí resources are being wasted on a failed experiment
When sex workers and Gardaí can work together justice can be done”

She continues “Violence against sex workers has increased by 92% since 2017. Criminals know that sex workers are forced to work alone to work legally. This isolation makes them vulnerable to attacks. If workers work together for safety they are breaking the law. Criminals know this and attack them because they know the workers will not risk arrest by reporting. Sex workers make up 61% of trans people murdered this year globally. Some misguided people say that all sex work is a form of violence but what language do we use then to talk about the very real violence such as the spate of robberies that occurred in the past 6 weeks?

We all expect laws and the Gardaí to keep us safe. But the current sex working laws and the way the Gardaí operate means that sex workers do not trust the Gardaí. The same Gardaí who arrest us for working together for safety are the ones we are expected to report to when there has been a crime committed against us. Gardaí are using the spate of crimes committed against sex workers lately as an excuse to clamp down on sex work. Is it any wonder trust is at an all-time low!

This year we have received data from a number of sources, including the Minister for Justice that the people who are arrested under the so-called brothel-keeping laws in Ireland are migrant workers) Not traffickers, not pimps but the women who the laws were purported to keep safe. 100% of the workers we speak to want to work together for safety. The law is failing and is being applied in a racist way. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Network report to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination drew attention to this fact.

Recent news has shown that some areas of the country cannot afford to take on new cases and cannot afford foot patrols. Garda resources are being squandered in an effort to police consensual sexual activity between adults. The laws have not reduced trafficking or indeed sex work.

Sex workers want to work with the Gardaí to make Ireland a safer place. This year a serial rapist was sentenced to 20 years for a spate of attack on sex workers. SWAI was the first point of contact for the victims and the collaboration with Gardaí took a dangerous criminal off the street. Think of what we could accomplish if the laws worked with sex workers, not against them.

This International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Sex Workers, let’s fight for everyone, even if they do a job you are not comfortable with. Fighting for the safety and health of women includes sex workers who cannot or will not give up sex work. We need to acknowledge that it is a job, often people’s last resort, do not take it away from them. The End Demand model does nothing to address the real needs of sex workers.

We need to decriminalise sex work so that sex workers can be safe in our jobs. I want to be proud to be in this country where we take care of everyone and where the laws really keep us safe!

This is the last International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Sex Workers before the review in 2020. We are concerned that the voices of currently working sex workers will be ignored in the review. Sex workers voices are invisible in Ireland. We in SWAI are not speaking over or for sex workers we ARE sex workers, and we need to be heard in the review of policies that affect our lives. We deserve to be listened to.”

Press release: Garda raids, pimps, reports and conferences this week but no one is asking sex workers what they need

November 28, 2019

Red umbrella yellow background Kate McGrew, current sex worker and director of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) said today “The same Gardaí department who arrest us for working together for safety is the one who we are expected to report to if a crime is committed against us. Is it any wonder that sex worker trust in Gardaí is at an all-time low? Saying there is a culture of distrust shows a lack of understanding for this marginalised community. This year sex workers, including a pregnant worker, were given jail sentences for working together. Is it any wonder that workers are reluctant to report?”

“Since the Gardaí have apprehended the criminals who attacked and robbed workers in Roscommon and Dublin we have learned of other attacks by criminal gangs. Again, because of the massive distrust in Gardaí, sex workers will not report” she continued.

“We have also begun to hear of workers being contacted by men who are offering security. The law has created a space where pimps can flourish. Pimps are using the increased number of violent attacks on workers to attempt to line their pockets. Both the attacks and pimps are the direct consequence of sex work laws.

She also voiced concerns about the raids that occurred last week, in the third day of action by the Gardaí this year. “This week we have also learned of more raids and questioning of clients. Raids like these will decrease the numbers of clients who seek the services of workers, which is their aim. But with mounting Christmas expenses workers, many of whom are single mothers, will be forced to take more risks in order to make ends meet. How can the state claim to keep women safe if they are pushing us into more risky situations?”

SWAI was disappointed to learn that The LGBTI+ Inclusion Strategy released today has no inclusion of sex workers. Kate said “The LGBTI+ community make up a significant portion of sex workers in Ireland. Whether you support sex workers rights or not, it is a massive oversight not to include us in the Inclusion Strategy, especially at a time when chemsex and HIV diagnosis are on the rise. Trans sex workers make up 61% of the number of trans people who have been killed globally this year. Ignoring sex workers in the LGBTI+ community is ahistorical, we have always been central to the fight for LGBTI+ rights. Sex workers threw the first brick at Stonewall!

But SWAI was heartened to see IHREC’s inclusion of our sex work laws as a barrier to justice for sex workers, especially migrant sex workers. Our sex work laws are applied in a racist way, with young migrant women feeling the brunt of the law. Almost all of the sex workers prosecuted for working together for safety have been migrant women. We are concerned about due process as sex workers are routinely arrested, prosecuted and convicted with Gardaí acting as prosecutors. The criminalisation of any aspect of sex work, including client criminalisation, has had a detrimental effect on the lives of sex workers, many of whom are already marginalised. Bodily autonomy and privacy are human rights but these rights are routinely breached for sex workers because of the law. We join the Irish Human Right and Equality Commission in calling for a review of our sex work laws. SWAI insists that current sex workers be listened to in the review in 2020. Our stories are important evidence that the law is not fit for purpose.

We encourage workers who have been victims of a crime to come forward. We know that when we work together with Gardaí we can make Ireland a safer place. We need to decriminalise sex work so that workers will feel that the Garda will work with them in prosecuting their attackers. We all want the law to keep us safe.”

#DecrimforSafety #SupportSafeSexWork

Press release: Sex workers lives at risk amid fear of reporting assaults due to bad and misguided legislation

November 14, 2019

Both sex workers and Gardaí have known about these criminals for some time but sex workers refuse to contact the Garda because trust in Gardaí is at an all-time low since the law changed in 2017.

“The increased assaults and robberies on sex workers currently being investigated by gardaí are a direct consequence of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017, which specifically prohibits sex workers from working or even living together for safety, so-called brothel-keeping, and makes the consensual purchase of sex a criminal offence” says Kate McGrew, current sex worker and Director of Sex Workers’ Alliance Ireland said today.

Commenting on the announcement that gardaí are investigating a systematic series of physical assaults and robbery of sex workers, she said “The 2017 law, which is due for review in early 2020, should be scrapped. It should be replaced by legislation that decriminalises sex work and to provide labour law, health and safety guarantees instead.”

“Under the 2017 legislation, sex workers have faced ever greater physical threats due to increased stigma and isolation. This has directly facilitated the type of attacks now being investigated by Gardaí because criminals can realistically assume that sex workers will be alone and defenceless if attacked. If they are working together for safety the criminals know the worker is unlikely to call the Gardaí because they fear being prosecuted for so-called brothel-keeping. These fears are not unfounded since two migrant workers working together for safety were jailed during the summer this year.

“The fact that these attacks are being carried out by gangs of people means that sex workers lives are now at risk from criminals gangs. The negative impact of the law is vividly shown by the fact that gardaí have had to issue the ludicrous assurance that sex workers who have been violently assaulted and robbed will be treated with the ‘utmost sensitivity and confidentiality.’ Such a statement would never need to be issued for any other worker or person subject to violent attacked and theft,” Kate McGrew said.

“Asking sex workers to only see known clients to them shows the disconnect that the Gardaí have from the lived experiences of sex workers. A worker needs to pay rent, pay bills and feed themselves, just like everyone else and is not in a position to turn away clients. Many sex workers are single mothers and on the run up to Christmas, they cannot afford to follow this advice.”

Through our safety networks, SWAI and sex workers have known about these criminals for some time but workers refuse to contact the Garda because, at best, they fear surveillance of their workplace or clients and their livelihood taken away.

“The law is placing the gardaí in an impossible position. If they encounter a sex worker living alone it is ‘legal’, but if contacted by sex workers living together for safety they must prosecute them as criminals,” she said.

“Declan Daly, Detective Chief Superintendent from the Garda National Protective Services Bureau said on Morning Ireland that this is a vulnerable population but the law is what is making the workers vulnerable.

It doesn’t have to be like this. In New Zealand sex work is decriminalised. Sex workers can take legal action for assault or exploitation, without being ‘shamed’ for their profession. A similar approach should apply in Ireland.

We all deserve to be safe and we all should have laws that work to make us safer. Sex workers deserve this too. The egregious waste of Gardaí resources used to prosecute consensual sex work and workers working together for safety could be better used in prosecuting criminals such as these. We have worked previously with Gardaí to successfully prosecute serial rapists in the past.

We need assurances from the Gardaí that if workers who have been working together for safety are attacked they will not be prosecuted under brothel-keeping laws. We need removal of brothel-keeping laws that mean that workers can work together safety. We need to be included in the review of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017 and we need sex work fully decriminalised.”

#DecrimforSafety #SupportSafeSexWork