Council Explores Prostitution Issues
24 July 2003
The Christchurch City Council will in October distribute a questionnaire
to the community on issues relating to the new Prostitution Reform
Act.
The Council voted this afternoon to consult with the public, Prostitutes
Collective, massage parlour owners, the Police, Community and Public Health
and others, as part of assessing whether or not it needs extra control measures
for prostitution-related activities, after the passing of the Act.
“
We need to take our time, consult carefully and look at all the
issues before deciding what if anything we need to do,” Prostitution
Reform Act Subcommittee chairperson, Sue Wells said. “We cannot
afford to be hasty about this but we are determined to look at issues
arising out of the new Act in a timely fashion.”
The Council’s timetable means that should it decide to take any
regulatory action, that would occur in the new year. If it decided to
pass any bylaws regulating the location of brothels and signage, they
would apply to existing brothels and signage.
When the Act was passed on Saturday 28 June, a number of activities became
lawful that were previously unlawful including keeping a brothel; living
on the earnings of prostitution; procuring a person for prostitution and;
soliciting for the purpose of prostitution.
Under the Act, the Council has two new bylaw-making powers and
new criteria to be used with resource consents in relation
to businesses of prostitution. These powers are for regulating the location
of brothels
and controlling signage advertising commercial sexual services.
Councils do not have the power to make bylaws which would
try to completely ban brothels, soliciting or prostitution in
general.
The Act contains no new bylaw making powers in relation to
soliciting on streets but territorial authorities have
for many years had the power
to control lawful activities on public roads.
Christchurch City Council’s Regulatory and Consents Committee has
established a subcommittee to work through the policy issues arising out
of the Prostitution Reform Act. This includes Councillors Sue Wells(chair),
Helen Broughton, Alister James, Lesley Keast and Ingrid Stonhill
Background
The new Act means that the Massage Parlours Act will be repealed in December
2003. From this date it will be legal to own and operate a brothel, provided
owners have an operator’s certificate issued by the District Court.
Community and Public Health inspectors will have the power to enter and
inspect a prostitution business in relation to health and safety matters.
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