The legislation forces advertising platforms to remove material they judge to be promoting prostitution for gain, with the threat of fines for bosses if they do not comply.
Audrey*, a 29-year-old sex worker, said anxiety about the bill and the
cost of living crisis have pushed her into working at a brothel where a pimp takes half of her money and she is at greater risk from customers due to being unable to screen them online.
Nazir Afzal, the ex-chief crown prosecutor for North West England, told
The Independent: “The protection of sex workers is not a morality issue, it’s a safeguarding one.”
Mr Afzal, who took on cases involving violence against women and child exploitation while working for the Crown Prosecution Service, added: “Anything that pushes them into more dangerous ways of working is to be avoided. This prohibition on online contact will only drive them further underground and more liable to abuse and exploitation.”