![](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/0_JS370766646.jpg\")
A sex worker in the Gallowgate area of Glasgow.<\/p>\nThe Sunday Mail took the streets of Glasgow\u2019s east end to gather accounts from current women still selling sex on the streets.A sex worker in the Gallowgate area of Glasgow.<\/p>\n
Crimes related to prostitution <\/a>on Scotland\u2019s streets have increased for the first time in a decade.<\/p>\n Near Glasgow\u2019s Barras Market, Barrowlands Ballroom and the quiet streets behind Tennent\u2019s Brewery, women stand alone looking for punters<\/a> who will pay cash for sex.<\/p>\n These are the same streets where Emma Caldwell <\/a>would stand 20 years ago and also previously the areas frequented by her killer Iain Packer.<\/a><\/p>\n Punters in cars pull up and give the nod before cash exchanges hands and a sex act is carried out nearby for as little as \u00a320.<\/p>\n However, despite crimes associated with prostitution<\/a> having fallen steadily by 81 per cent since 2014, the period of 2023-24 saw a 16 per cent increase, with 72 crimes recorded up from 62 crimes in 2022-23.<\/p>\n The Glasgow City area also saw the highest recorded crimes <\/a>with 44 per cent in 2023-24 according to the latest Scottish government figures. It comes as Packer was finally brought to justice last year \u2013 19 years after killing Emma.<\/p>\n The Sunday Mail<\/a> took the streets of Glasgow\u2019s east end to gather accounts from current women still selling sex <\/a>on the streets.<\/p>\n We spoke to one mum, now 42, who began selling sex at just 15, and has worked as a sex worker<\/a> in the city for 25 years. She said: \u201cI knew Emma, I was around Duke Street<\/a> where she was working back then.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been out here since about 1998 when I first tried heroin at 15.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t want to be here but I have to be as I\u2019m addicted to crack and cocaine. There are still guys out looking every night of the week but they want you for as little as \u00a320.<\/p>\n \u201cEmma\u2019s name still brings me to tears 20 years later. She didn\u2019t deserve what happened to her, she deserved so much better.<\/p>\n \u201cShe was a beautiful soul and in some way, we are all like Emma. We are out here because we have to be, not because we want to be. I remember Packer.<\/a><\/p>\n “I will have been with him at some point as he was always about then.<\/p>\n “Packer <\/a>is where he should be but all these years on, the girls are still here, the streets are still not safe but there is money to be made.<\/p>\n “When I was on heroin I would have sold my soul for a tenner.<\/p>\n \u201cThe only thing that could save me is jail.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d rather be in prison than here.\u201d<\/p>\n A second woman, who says she knew Emma from the early 2000s, said: \u201cWe all remember Emma. But we are still here doing this because we need to. There\u2019s still business<\/a> or we wouldn\u2019t be here.\u201d<\/p>\n A third woman said she had only recently begun selling sex on the streets. She added: \u201cI\u2019m just new to this, but I\u2019m here because I need the money.\u201d<\/p>\n A Scottish Government spokesperson said:\u201cThere is no place for the commercial sexual exploitation<\/a> of any individual in Scotland.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are taking action to support women to sustainably exit from prostitution. This includes our joint work with Police Scotland<\/a> to implement their new national approach to prostitution, Operation Begonia, where officers signpost women to local support and at the same time, challenge and deter men\u2019s demand for prostitution.\u201d<\/p>\n Detective Superintendent Steven Bertram, lead on Prostitution, Police Scotland, said: \u201cProstitution <\/a>brings a significant threat of risk and harm to people and communities.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople involved in prostitution<\/a>, most of whom are women, are particularly vulnerable to violence.<\/p>\n \u201cDrug <\/a>or alcohol related issues, or poverty, can drive people into prostitution, particularly on street.<\/p>\n \u201cOur approach, as demonstrated in Aberdeen, Glasgow<\/a> and Dundee, focuses on safety and welfare, engaging with people and signposting them to support available from our partners, and hopefully reducing the risk of violence.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is about building trust and confidence in policing. It\u2019s about safer communities and supported victims. And it\u2019s about tackling violence against women and girls in all its forms.\u201d<\/p>\n Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.<\/p>\n You’ll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.<\/p>\n No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.<\/p>\n All you have to do is click here if you’re on mobile<\/strong><\/a>, select ‘Join Community’ and you’re in!<\/p>\n If you’re on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click ‘Join Community’.<\/p>\n We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. 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A Sunday Mail investigation gathered accounts from current and former sex workers who have told how police were regular clients on the streets of Glasgow before and after Emma\u2019s death in 2005.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/3_JS207404278.jpg\")
Iain Packer featured in a BBC Disclosure programme in 2019 during which he denied killing Ms Caldwell in 2005 and insisted he was not a violent man.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/0_WACOMMUNITYQR3.jpg\")
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