All the evidence shows voters want Labour to shift to the left — but initial signs from Andy Burnham are worrying on that front, cautions DIANE ABBOTT
LATER this month, the Unison national delegate conference will be debating and voting on a motion to end the union’s long-term support for the Nordic model — because, it is claimed, it increases the risks for “sex workers” — and instead move towards supporting the New Zealand model, which, it is claimed, is so much safer.
Many similar motions calling for the “decriminalisation of sex work” as implemented in New Zealand have been passed by various trade unions and Labour Party branches over recent years.
Typically, the motions do not spell out clearly that “decriminalisation of sex work” (aka “full decrim”) means that all the actors, including punters, brothel-keepers and pimps (revamped as “managers”) would be decriminalised as well as those who sell sex.
ANNA FISHER explores what would it mean for women’s equality and public safety if Britain embraces full commercialisation of the sex trade
Legal frameworks designed to safeguard women are too often weaponised against them, reinforcing male power and entrenching injustice. The FiLiA Ending MVAWG Team highlight some of the issues
Half a century after transformative laws reshaped Britain, women’s rights are again contested. This International Women’s Day is a call to remember how change was won, and to organise to defend it, says KATE RAMSDEN
AMANDA J QUICK warns about the ever-expanding influence of the sex industry – and the harm it unleashes on both the women involved and society collectively, especially the young


