France bans buying sex, not selling it
France is to make it illegal to pay for sex after MPs finally approved new legislation on prostitution following more than two years of rows and opposition by senators.
Under the new law, anyone caught purchasing an act from a sex worker will be fined and required to attend classes on the harms of prostitution.
There would be a €1,500 (£1,200) fine for a first offence, rising to €3,750 for a second, which would also be put on the person’s criminal record. The offender would be forced to attend classes highlighting the harms of prostitution.
The law was passed by the lower of parliament by 64 votes to 12 with many MPs absent.
The French parliament started debating the bill in 2013, but the final vote was delayed after several hearings owing to sharp divisions between the lower parliamentary chamber and the senate.
The move makes France one of only a handful of European countries to follow the Nordic model of criminalising consumers rather than sex workers. These include Norway and Iceland.
The legislation passed on Wednesday will treat the sex worker as a victim rather than a criminal.
It will also make it easier for foreign sex workers, many of whom are illegally in France, to acquire a temporary residence permit if they embark on a programme to find other work.
In France, prostitution itself – receiving money for sex - is not a crime.
But activities around it are. Laws prohibit pimping, human trafficking and buying sex from a minor. Brothels were outlawed in 1946.
France is to make it illegal to pay for sex after MPs finally approved new legislation on prostitution following more than two years of rows and opposition by senators.
Under the new law, anyone caught purchasing an act from a sex worker will be fined and required to attend classes on the harms of prostitution.
There would be a €1,500 (£1,200) fine for a first offence, rising to €3,750 for a second, which would also be put on the person’s criminal record. The offender would be forced to attend classes highlighting the harms of prostitution.
The law was passed by the lower of parliament by 64 votes to 12 with many MPs absent.
The French parliament started debating the bill in 2013, but the final vote was delayed after several hearings owing to sharp divisions between the lower parliamentary chamber and the senate.
The move makes France one of only a handful of European countries to follow the Nordic model of criminalising consumers rather than sex workers. These include Norway and Iceland.
The legislation passed on Wednesday will treat the sex worker as a victim rather than a criminal.
It will also make it easier for foreign sex workers, many of whom are illegally in France, to acquire a temporary residence permit if they embark on a programme to find other work.
In France, prostitution itself – receiving money for sex - is not a crime.
But activities around it are. Laws prohibit pimping, human trafficking and buying sex from a minor. Brothels were outlawed in 1946.
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