UK politicians are calling for a nationwide ban on pimping websites, aiming to modernise outdated laws and curb the growing online sexual exploitation of women.
A group of 59 cross-party MPs has backed an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill that would make it illegal to operate or profit from websites hosting prostitution adverts.
Campaigners argue that accessing women for sexual exploitation online has become as easy as ordering food, with websites allowing users to search for women by postcode and browse explicit images and videos.
These platforms are accused of fuelling the demand for sexual services and facilitating sex trafficking on an industrial scale.
According to research from the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Commercial Sexual Exploitation, technological developments have dramatically increased the speed and reach of the sex trade. While traditional forms of street-level solicitation have declined, the internet has created vast digital marketplaces for sexual exploitation.
The Home Affairs Committee concluded in 2023 that websites advertising prostitution significantly aid in trafficking for sexual purposes. The Home Office has also acknowledged that such platforms are now the most significant enablers of sexual exploitation linked to trafficking networks.
Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi has tabled three key amendments to the bill. In addition to banning pimping websites, they propose criminalising the purchase of sex and decriminalising those who are exploited through prostitution. The aim is to shift legal accountability from victims to those who profit from or perpetuate exploitation.
During a recent Commons debate, Labour’s Tracy Gilbert highlighted the degrading language used in online reviews of women posted by sex buyers. One review criticised a woman’s poor English, while another likened the experience to bad customer service. Gilbert compared these reviews to product ratings, saying they dehumanised women and treated them as commodities.
Kat Banyard, senior programme manager at UK Feminista, described the proposed reforms as the most significant push for legal change in a generation. She criticised the government’s historical inaction on large-scale sexual exploitation and the unchecked operation of prostitution websites, which she labelled as de facto online brothels.
Banyard added that while women in the sex trade face criminal charges for soliciting, the men who exploit them often go unpunished. She said the new legislation would help correct this imbalance by targeting those who fuel and profit from exploitation, not the victims themselves.
Supporters of the proposed laws point to international examples, including France, Ireland, Norway and Sweden, where similar models have led to reduced demand for paid sex, deterrence of traffickers and a shift in public attitudes towards sexual exploitation.
The amendments are due to be debated in Parliament this Wednesday.
