Labour MP Tracy Gilbert called for ministers to outlaw adult services websites and said she had reported two – Vivastreet and AdultWork – to Police Scotland
Online ‘mega-brothels’ offering women for sex are “crime scenes” responsible for “the largest human trafficking operations in modern UK history”., ministers have been told.
Labour MP Tracy Gilbert demanded adult services sites – which are allowed to operate legally – are shut down. And she revealed she has contacted police in Scotland urging them to probe two companies – Adultwork and Vivastreet.
She told a Westminster Hall debate that the websites are behind “industrial-scale” exploitation. Ms Gilbert said: “My ask to Ministers here in Westminster is: shut down pimping websites now.
“They are directly perpetrating human trafficking in Scotland and across the UK and they are facilitating industrial-scale sex trafficking across the UK.”
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She continued: “These websites are crime scenes. Shut them down now, hold their operators accountable and let their victims finally access justice.”
Ms Gilbert, MP for Edinburgh North and Leith, said: “There has long existed extensive evidence that these online mega-brothels are facilitating industrial-scale sex trafficking and sexual exploitation across the UK.”
The Labour backbencher argued that Scotland’s human trafficking laws would cover Vivastreet and Adultwork, telling MPs: “Be in no doubt as to the gravity of the implications: it means pimping websites are the largest human trafficking operations in modern UK history.
“Police Scotland should launch an immediate criminal investigation into the individuals running pimping websites in Scotland for human trafficking – an offence that carries a maximum life sentence.”
And she said the law must be reviewed in England and Wales. Ms Gilbert stated: “It is a national scandal that the individuals operating Adultwork and Vivastreet have not only been allowed to operate for years with total impunity, but that they have been publicly presented by Government and the National Crime Agency as partners in tackling sex trafficking.”
The Home Office and police were criticised by the home affairs committee in 2023 for attending meetings with bosses at adult services sites. This was described as a “disgrace” – and has not continued since the Tories were ousted.
Labour assistant whip Gregor Poynton said the Government is reviewing prostitution laws to tackle sexual exploitation. He said: “For too long, women and vulnerable people have been trapped within sexual exploitation under the guise of prostitution.
“The daily abuse that they suffer is truly horrific and that people are profiting from this exploitation as sickening.”
Mr Poynton said: “Under the previous government, officials did meet with organisations that conduct the online services of adult online services websites.
“However under this, government, officials have not met, and neither have ministers met, with those online service website providers.” He continued: “As members are aware, the online space is a significant enabler of sexual exploitation and our response must now reflect that.
“We must also acknowledge that individuals selling sex have increasingly turned to technology to try to manage their safety, as Bristol University found in its research on prostitution in England and Wales. And it’s important we try and understand the unintended consequences for the safety for those in prostitution, of removing an option that helps them cease to manage their safety.
“However, online platforms must be responsible and held accountable for the content on their websites, including platforms taking proactive steps to prevent their sites being used by criminals.”
In February a harrowing report by the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner (IASC) described the adult services sites as a ready-made tool for abuse.
Commissioner Eleanor Lyons said: “When organised crime can market victims openly and children can access these platforms without proper checks, the system is clearly failing the vulnerable and shielding criminals profiteering.
“These websites are ready-made tools for abuse and the toughest action must be taken against them.”
A Vivastreet statement said: “Vivastreet is regulated by Ofcom under the Online Safety Act and takes safety extremely seriously. We deploy a range of measures to detect, report, and remove potentially exploitative content, including requiring all adult category advertisers to undergo age and ID verification.
“All our adverts are screened via a range of indicators informed by police advice, with suspicious content referred proactively to National Policing Units and the NCA, as required by law. These referral pathways have already led to a number of arrests and charges, as laid out by the Minister in Parliament today.”
The Mirror has contacted AdultWork for comment.