Sections 33, 34, 35 and 36 create
summary offences. Section 33A creates an aggravated version of the offence in section 33, and is an
indictable offence. Section 37 prescribes the penalties.
Sections 33 and 33A Section 33 reads: Section 33A reads: The difference between these offences arises because the definition of a brothel in English law does not require that the premises are used for the purposes of
prostitution, since a brothel exists wherever more than one person offers sexual contact, whether for payment or not. "Prostitution" is defined by section 51(2) of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 as follows: "Payment" is defined by section 51(3):
Section 34 Section 35(1) Section 36 Penalties Section 37 gives effect to Schedule 2 to the act, which sets out the penalties for the above offences. For sections 33, 34, 35 and 36 the penalty is imprisonment for three months for a first offence, or six months "for an offence committed after a previous conviction" for any of those offences. The maximum sentence for the offence under section 33A is six months in a
magistrates' court, or seven years in the
Crown Court. ==Succeeding Sexual Offences Acts==