Brown Peter: Prostitution Reform Bill — Second Reading 
Brown Peter: Prostitution Reform Bill — Second Reading 
[Volume:606;Page:3612] 
PETER BROWN (Deputy Leader—NZ First) 
: 
 I do not know whether this is a good or a bad claim to be able to make but I would suggest that nobody in this House with perhaps the exception of Georgina Beyer has had a closer association with prostitutes and prostitution than my good self. Everywhere that I have seen that activity it was a dreadful activity. That is the only conclusion I can reach. I have seen the sex industry across the world in my role as a ship’s officer. I should perhaps clarify in case my good lady is listening at home that I have never availed myself of the services of prostitutes. However I say to this House that I did not always look like I do now; at one time I had some appeal to the opposite sex!  
I agree in large measure with what the honourable Larry Baldock has just outlined. He has outlined what the proposer of this bill thinks the bill will and will not do. But let me tell the House what the bill will do if it becomes law. First of all it provides for the setting up and operation of brothels. OK—maybe some members say that that is no big deal. The bill allows for the procuring for financial gain of a woman or a young man for the selling of sex—for that person to have sexual intercourse with a third party. That in itself will give some incentive to the ratbags in this country to procure young women or to entice them for the purpose of selling sex. That is happening already but this legislation will give an incentive to encourage that.  
As a result of bringing in this legislation the activity and the problems associated with the activity of prostitution will become worse and far more serious. If this bill becomes law we can expect the sex industry to expand. I do not think that anybody would argue with that. Tim Barnett might say that it will increase the number of brothels but will not necessarily increase the number of sex workers. Who does he think he is kidding? 
Hon Chris Carter 
: Where is your evidence? 
PETER BROWN 
: I will give the member my evidence. I tell the member that wherever prostitution has been liberalised anywhere in the world it has expanded. I ask the member to prove me wrong. 
Hon Phil Goff 
: You prove yourself right. 
PETER BROWN 
: Prove myself right? Mr Goff has travelled the world. He should go and look for himself. He should put on his dark glasses and his hat and walk around the areas. When we liberalised the security regimes in the ports that opened the door for prostitution and the situation became worse.  
There will be more drug abuse. That occurs worldwide. There will be more child prostitution. There were people from Australia at the Justice and Electoral Committee and they told us that. Mr Barnett says they told us lies. I do not believe that; my research tells me that they told the truth. There will be more sexual activity which will lead to more sexually transmitted diseases and there will be more trafficking in women. I would suggest that in this country trafficking in women is fairly low-key. But in Europe where prostitution has been liberalised it is a big industry in itself. If members think it cannot happen here they should go and look at what has happened in Australia. By opening the industry up there will be more violence against prostitutes. There will also be more blatant advertising both of the services provided—and Mr Barnett knows this—and for the recruitment of prostitutes. A disproportionate number of young Maori women in particular will become involved in prostitution. 
Jill Pettis 
: Oh God! 
PETER BROWN 
: Yes they will. The member should go down to the wharves where they sell their sexual services on ships. She will see that already a disproportionate number of young Maori women are involved now. As a result of this bill there will be more criminal activity. To say that we will legalise prostitution is like saying that although robbery is against the law now we should legalise robbery so that it is no longer a criminal activity. Everywhere in the world where prostitution has been liberalised criminals have become involved and the industry has expanded.  
It is generally accepted that prostitution cannot be abolished and I am not standing here tonight and saying that I want to bring in laws to abolish prostitution. I know that that will not occur; it is beyond the realms of possibility. But if we are to change the law we can change it in a positive way. We should look at what Sweden is doing with a considerable degree of success. New Zealand First has worked hard behind the scenes on the Swedish law and we have produced a bill. To this day a bill entitled the Prostitution (Client Liability and Prostitutes Care) Bill sits in the name of my colleague Brent Catchpole. That bill is in the ballot right now and it would improve things no end. It has three principle aims. First that bill would make the client responsible so that he or she could be fined and treated in the same way that we currently treat prostitutes. Second it aims to encourage young prostitutes in particular to leave the industry and to fund a system so that they can leave the industry. The third aim is to restrict and control the advertising of sexual services. If members really want to do something for the people in the industry—and with those little noises they are saying they do—they should look seriously at supporting that bill.  
This bill refers to the age of 18 but we know that is a front. Tim Barnett wants the legislation to come in and to reduce the age to 16. I have here in the House a press release headed “Call for change to sex trade bill” about Tim Barnett and I have not heard him challenge it. 
I quote from that press release: “Labour MP Tim Barnett wants MPs to consider lowering the legal age for the sex trade proposed in his Prostitution Reform Bill. The bill which aims to protect sex workers from exploitation by decriminalising prostitutes applies only to workers over 18. Yesterday”—whatever day that was in September 2001—“Mr Barnett told a cross-party committee hearing submissions on the bill that it needed to reconsider the proposed age.” There is no doubt in my mind that that is his plan two. Mr Barnett wants to move to plan two.  
If we look at countries in the western world where prostitution has been liberalised we see that Sweden has tightened up its laws and that France is now looking at tightening up its laws. If that was not a liberal regime I do not know what was but France is looking at tightening up the laws on prostitution. Finland is also looking to tighten up its laws. [ 
Interruption 
] I missed that remark from Mr Carter but I do not think it was worth consideration. Both Norway and Denmark are looking at tightening up their laws. 
Government Member 
: What about Australia? 
PETER BROWN 
: The member asks me about Australia. Let me talk about Australia. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The member should cease his interjections or else he will be leaving the Chamber. This is a serious debate. 
PETER BROWN 
: A senator in South Australia who supported this sort of regime went and looked at what had happened in Sydney. After having a first-hand look at the situation there he went back to South Australia and changed his mind. He said that that was not for him and he opposed the liberalisation of prostitution reform in South Australia. So members should not tell me that everybody buys into this measure for the good of the community.  
This bill is about promoting the prostitution industry. That is what it is totally about. Young women will be attracted into the profession—that is “profession” in inverted commas—and it will be to their detriment. If we pass this bill tonight we are doing a total disservice to young people in this country. We will open up the area of comfort hostessing for people from various parts of the world. Business people who come here to New Zealand will ask for comfort hostesses. We will open the doors for people to entice and encourage young people in particular into this industry. Katherine Rich is worried about her two daughters. I can tell her that if we pass this bill there is a greater risk that they will be involved in this industry.