Council raids hit 50 brothels

File photo / APN

About 50 residential brothels in the central Auckland area have been raided in the past year after 95 complaints were made to the Auckland Council.

Council resource consents manager David Oakhill said the complaints related mainly to breaches of district plan rules, such as brothels operating in residential areas.

"A number of these complaints were found to be well-founded and we took appropriate action, either to close the operation or ask the operator to formalise the activity through resource consent," said Mr Oakhill.

He said police were called during six of the raids after the operators refused to let council officers on to their properties.

"When investigating complaints of this nature, council officers visit the premise to ascertain whether the complaint is legitimate, and sometimes search warrants are required."

Mr Oakhill said in most instances, the number of people working on the property exceeded the number permitted by the district plan.

The Prostitutes Collective says the raids are turning more prostitutes to the streets.

The council closure of an unlicensed brothel in February at Woodward Rd, Mt Albert, had resulted in at least six prostitutes losing a place of work.

"It is not possible for all sex workers from brothels that are raided to move to other indoor brothels, and this is resulting in people finding clients on the street," said collective national co-ordinator Catherine Healy.

The council is seeking legislation to control street prostitution, and the Auckland Council Regulation of Prostitution in Specified Places Bill is before Parliament.

A council spokesman said there were differences in district plans throughout the Auckland region, but the council was working towards amalgamating them into one.

Ms Healy said: "In the review currently underway, we hope that the Auckland Council will allow for home-based sex work, managed brothels and street-based sex work."

Tammy, who became a street sex worker in Manukau after a brothel was shut by the council, said 20 per cent of prostitutes in Hunters Corner had to work on the street because of council-linked brothel closures.

"It's really an irony that the council is now trying to demonise us," Tammy said, "when it is them who had driven us out here in the first place."