Council approved brothels want laws to deal with sex work at unapproved premises. Nathan Coates reports.

The Daily Telegraph has labelled Willoughby "sin city". Image: Flickr jtstrathdee

Ex-Australian Tax Office agent Chris Seage says he has gone from “hunting tax cheats to hunting brothel cheats”.

Seage now works for brothel owners as a consultant and is lobbying the state government for tougher sex-work laws.

In relation to registered massage businesses that offer sex or “happy endings” without council approval, Seage said: “They undercut council approved brothels and are known havens for tax and welfare fraudsters, peddlers of un-safe sex, sex slaves, and illegal immigrants.”

Commissioned by the Daily Telegraph, Seage’s firm: Brothel Busters, investigated bathe houses and massage parlours throughout Willoughby City.

A list of 21 allegedly illegal brothels was given to council and Daily Telegraph journalist, Nick Tabakoff, reported under the headline: “Blind eye on illicit brothels turns Chatswood into sin city.”

Seage says the issue of illegal brothels in Chatswood and throughout Willoughby City “is out of control.”

But other stakeholders don’t agree. Sex workers say agendas are at play in relation to reports of illegal brothels in Willoughby City. Investigations are ongoing however Council says it receives few complaints related to brothels.

Scarlet Alliance (Australian Sex Workers Association) CEO Janelle Fawkes, said: “We need to look at the agendas behind reports of supposed increases in brothels operating outside council guidelines. Brothel owners often see individual sex workers or small groups of sex workers working together as competition.”

When confronted with being anti-competitive, Seage said: “Scarlett Alliance are about to have a big bucket dropped on them by me…the competition should be amongst legal brothels.”

The Disorderly House Amendment Act was passed in 1995, which meant it was no longer a common law offence to operate a brothel.

Police do not attend to enforce compliance from massage parlours operating outside council guidelines.

In NSW local council has the responsibility of regulating the local sex industry in their capacity to enforce approved use of land and buildings.

On the size of the brothel problem in Willoughby City, council spokesperson, Rebecca Hill, said: “Council processes over 3000 complaints each year. Complaints about alleged illegal brothel activity represent about 0.2% of the total number of complaints.”

When asked if he was concerned about alleged illegal brothels in the area, Chatswood businessman, Neil Bloxsom, said: “No…not at all. It doesn’t bother me – it doesn’t interest me – these guys are seeking out these services, they are not being solicited to.”

Scarlet Alliance say NSW is known nationally as best practice in relation to the management of brothels.

QLD and VIC have licensing systems that Mr Seage says dont work, “90% of the QLD sex industry is un-regulated”, he said.

For the sex industry in NSW, Saege wants, “tougher laws – not more [local council] compliance officers”.

Fawkes in not in favour of new laws or a brothel licensing system in NSW and said: “Whilst NSW has some areas that need to be tinkered with – any changes would be a step back.”

The NSW Coalition however is pushing ahead with plans for a brothel licensing system. A spokesperson for the Minister for Local Government, Hon. Don Page, said: “It is the Government’s commitment to ensure brothels will be licensed…This is the policy we took to the people before the State Election and we are committed to doing what we can to implement it.”