Judicial review brought over Edinburgh Council strip club ban

Edinburgh Council has opposed that application and the Labour-led administration will ask the court not to allow the union to participate.

USW, which is the sex worker’s branch of United Voices of the World union (UVW), ran a successful two-year campaign in Bristol to keep the strip clubs open in the city, culminating at the end of July with the city’s council, voting 10-1 against a proposed ban.

The union wants to be able to put forward arguments against the ban including that the nil-cap is indirect gender discrimination against women who make up the vast majority of strippers under the Equality Act and that it interferes with their Article 8 right to respect for private and family life under the European Convention of Human Rights.

USW said that the council is also trying to stop sex workers from putting their case before the court by insisting that their union is potentially liable for CEC’s legal costs.

UVW has applied for a protective expenses order (PEO), which would allow the union to participate in the review without the risk of being found liable for legal expenses which could be over £100,000.

Edinburgh Council has opposed this application too, arguing the union should be liable for the council’s costs if the review is not successful. The union, which represents low paid workers, has already raised over £20,000 in donations to launch the judicial review.

Suzi, an Edinburgh stripper and UVW member, said: “Our voices need to be heard. We expect a Labour-led council to be leading by example when it comes to consulting workers, not denying us a say. This decision goes against all the principles of the labour movement. If the council is so certain about the lawfulness of the cap, why not let UVW and those of us affected take part in the judicial review?”

Danielle Worden, legal caseworker for UVW, said: “The council’s opposition to our application to simply just participate in the challenge demonstrates how desperate they are to block the workers most affected from having a voice. This is shocking conduct from a Labour-led Council that supposedly cares about workers’ rights. We are confident that this desperation is due to the Council knowing the nil-cap is unequivocally discriminatory and unlawful, as demonstrated by Bristol Council’s recent refusal to impose a nil-cap.”