Scotland’s key public bodies, from law enforcement to government, define prostitution as violence against women, yet Scots law does not reflect that. Ash Regan MSP’s Member’s Bill, now before the Scottish Parliament, implements the Nordic Model by criminalising buyers, decriminalising sellers, and creating a statutory right to support.
The case for change
The current law punishes those exploited instead of the men who buy sex.
Reform is needed to prevent harm and reduce demand.
Prostitution targets the most vulnerable women and girls, often through poverty, abuse or coercion.
It causes high levels of violence, trauma and long-term health impacts.
Criminal records under old laws have trapped women in stigma and disadvantage.
Men who buy sex face little consequence, fuelling demand and exploitation.
Organised crime and trafficking thrive wherever demand is left unchecked.
Shifting the burden onto buyers helps prevent more women being pulled into prostitution.
Reducing demand aligns Scotland with international obligations to combat exploitation.
What the Bill does
The Prostitution (Offences and Support) (Scotland) Bill changes the way Scotland responds to prostitution.
Its purpose is to reduce demand, end the criminalisation of those who are exploited, and guarantee support for people affected.
It does this through four main measures:
Section 1 creates a new offence of paying for the performance of a sexual act. This places the responsibility where it belongs, on the buyer.
Section 2 repeals Section 46 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, which made soliciting in public an offence.
Section 4 quashes historic convictions under Section 46 of the 1982 Act.
Section 6 introduces a statutory right to support for anyone who is, or has been, in prostitution.
Myths and Facts
Common claims about prostitution mask the reality of exploitation. Evidence shows demand-reduction laws work.
Myth: Prostitution is a free choice.
Fact: Poverty, abuse and coercion drive involvement.
Myth: Prostitution is work like any other.
Fact: No contract can enforce sexual access. No health and safety standards apply.
Myth: This pushes prostitution underground.
Fact: Prostitution cannot go underground — traffickers rely on buyers finding women, and that makes detection possible.
Myth: The Nordic Model puts women at risk.
Fact: Prostitution is inherently unsafe, no legal model can change that.
Myth: Criminalising buyers won’t change behaviour.
Fact: Buyer research shows they most fear exposure and criminalisation.
Harms and Vulnerabilities of Prostitution in Scotland
Encompass Snapshots carried out in Scotland in 2021, 2022 and 2023 surveyed women receiving specialist support. Across these surveys, women disclosed that they had…
entered as children
been trafficked
addiction issues
experienced violence and abuse in prostitution
mental health issues, incl. depression, anxiety and PTSD
Your Questions Answered
Here are clear answers to some of the most common questions about the Prostitution (Offences and Support) (Scotland) Bill
What is a Member’s Bill?
A Member’s Bill is a proposal for a new law put forward by an individual MSP rather than the Government. Before it can be introduced, the MSP must publish a consultation, produce a summary of responses, and secure cross-party support from at least 18 other MSPs. Once a final proposal has been lodged and sufficient support confirmed, the Bill can be formally introduced. After that, it follows the same three stages of debate, scrutiny and voting as Government legislation.
How do you change Scots Law?
Scots law is changed by passing a Bill — a proposal for a new law or a change to existing law. Every Bill goes through three stages in the Scottish Parliament. At Stage 1, committees take evidence and MSPs debate its general principles. At Stage 2, MSPs scrutinise the Bill in detail and can amend it. Stage 3 is the final debate and vote of the whole Parliament. If a majority of MSPs support it, the Bill becomes an Act of the Scottish Parliament.
What is the Nordic Model?
The Nordic Model (also known as the Equality Model) is a legal framework first introduced in Sweden in 1999 and later adopted in countries such as Norway, Iceland, France, Ireland and Canada. It recognises prostitution as a system of inequality and exploitation, in which the vast majority of buyers are men, and the vast majority of sellers are impoverished or coerced women. Its underlying principle is that equality between the sexes is impossible while women are treated as a commodity to be bought by men. The Nordic Model addresses this by shifting criminal responsibility onto the buyers, who create the demand, while removing it from the sellers. It also provides specialist support for sellers and aims to change public attitudes through education programs. This approach recognises prostitution as a form of violence against women and girls, and seeks to reduce demand in line with Scotland’s Equally Safe strategy and international human rights obligations.
Why does Scotland need this Bill?
Prostitution in Scotland — as elsewhere in the world — is marked by violence, trauma and exploitation. UK surveys show the share of men who buy sex doubled in the 1990s and almost tripled again by 2010. According to a UN report, violent and degrading pornography dehumanises women and entrenches the attitudes that drive men to buy sex. Following the sharp rise in the use of such pornography since 2010, more men are buying sex than before. Rising demand means more women are drawn into prostitution, and more women are harmed, while the law continues to criminalise them for soliciting and allows the men who create demand to face little consequence.
How will this Bill address the problem?
Buyer research shows that men behave like rational, risk-averse actors: they know prostitution harms women, and many admit to seeking out those who are most vulnerable because it gives them a sense of power. What deters them is not the harm caused but the personal risk of exposure, a criminal record or prison. This Bill tackles the problem at its source: by criminalising buyers it creates those deterrent risks, curbs demand, and shifts responsibility onto those who create it. At the same time, it decriminalises women and guarantees them access to support, so that those harmed are not punished but helped to exit.
What do survivors say?
This approach is also called the Survivor Model, because it reflects what many women with lived experience of prostitution have been demanding for years. Survivors support it as the only framework that recognises prostitution as a system of exploitation and male violence, and that combines criminalising demand with decriminalising sellers, funding exit services and changing public attitudes. They reject calls for full decriminalisation or legalisation, pointing to evidence from countries such as Germany, the Netherlands and New Zealand where violence and trafficking have remained high or worsened. Survivors who speak out risk retaliation from those who profit from prostitution, including pimps, traffickers and organised crime, which is why few survivors can do so publicly. But the voices of those who do are crucial, and their testimony helped shape this Bill alongside the evidence of frontline workers and public bodies.
How can you support the Bill?
The Bill can only become law if a majority of MSPs vote for it, and they are more likely to do so if they know their constituents support it. Here are concrete ways you can help:
- Write to your MSP: use email or post to say you support the Bill. Constituency or parliamentary addresses are fine.
- Arrange a meeting or attend one of their surgeries. If you don’t feel comfortable going alone, bring a friend.
- Organise or attend a protest, march or peaceful demonstration.
- Write letters or op-eds for the press, or submit opinion pieces (online or in print) to raise awareness.
- Sign or create petitions via the Scottish Parliament’s petitions system.
- Use social media to share accurate information, counter myths, and encourage others to take action.
Public support matters. When MSPs hear from constituents, see media coverage, and feel there is momentum, they’re more likely to vote for change.
Survivor Voices
Survivors speak out about prostitution
Prostitution is the most brutal expression of male privilege and of men’s failure to develop both empathy and a vision of women as subjects of their own lives.
