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Over ‘Sexed’ Regulation and the Disregarded Worker: An Overview of the Impact of Sexual Entertainment Policy on Lap-Dancing Club Workers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 September 2012

Rachela Colosi
Rachela Colosi*
Affiliation:
School of Social Sciences, University of Lincoln E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

In England and Wales, with the introduction of Section 27 of the Policing and Crime Act 2009, lap-dancing clubs can now be licensed as Sexual Entertainment Venues. This article considers such, offering a critique of Section 27, arguing that this legislation is not evidence-based, with lap-dancing policy, like other sex-work policies, often associated with crime, deviance and immorality. Furthermore, it is argued that sex-work policies are gradually being homogenised as well as increasingly criminalised. Other criticisms relate to various licensing loopholes which lead to some striptease venues remaining unlicensed and unregulated, potentially impacting on the welfare of erotic dancers. In addition, restrictions on the numbers of lap-dancing venues may exacerbate dancer unemployment, drawing these women into poverty. Finally, The Policing and Crime Act reflects how the political focus is being directed away from the exploitation of workers, on to issues relating to crime and deviance, despite limited evidence to support this focus.

Keywords

Lap-dancingPolicing and Crime Actcriminalisationmorality
Type
Articles
Information
Social Policy and Society , Volume 12 , Issue 2 , April 2013 , pp. 241 - 252
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012

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