Prostitution in Canada

Prostitution In Canada

In Canada, the buying and selling of sexual services are legal, but most surrounding activities, such as public communication for the purpose of prostitution, brothels and procuring are offences under the law.

While the prohibition of the activities surrounding the sex trade makes it difficult to practice prostitution without breaking any law, the act of exchanging sex for money has never been illegal in Canada, a situation which has created and continues to create confusion and controversy.

The prostitution laws have been largely unchanged since the early 19th century despite frequent commissions, studies and constitutional challenges since the introduction of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982. There are currently a number of constitutional challenges in process, one of which (Bedford v. Canada) has been partially upheld by the Ontario Court of Appeal, but the federal government announced they are appealing this decision to the Supreme Court of Canada.

There is a general agreement that the status quo of prostitution in Canada is problematic, but there is no consensus on what should be done. There is an ideological disagreement between those who want to see prostitution eliminated, generally because they view it either as an exploitative or unacceptable part of society, and those who view prostitution as a transaction between consenting adults and advocate decriminalization.

The current Conservative government is in favour of stronger sanctions, having rejected recommendations from the 2006 parliamentary committee for reform, an agenda which had been a matter of discussion since the 1985 Fraser report.