Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has announced plans to clamp down on prostitution and lap-dancing clubs.

The proposals could see men who use prostitutes controlled by a pimp or trafficked in to the country face criminal charges.

Anyone using a prostitute “controlled for another person’s gain” will be guilty of an offence.

They would face fines and a criminal record. Ignorance of the woman’s circumstances would not be an available defence.

Under the plans lap-dancing clubs will fall within the same rules as sex shops and sex cinemas.

Councils will have greater powers to control their spread and the clubs could face higher charges for licences.

At the moment they are regulated like pubs and bars.