The police have worked hard to build up a relationship and trust with us and have treated us with respect

Ruth Morgan-Thomas

A steering group is still trying to find an alternative site in a non-residential area.

The aim of the tolerance zone was to provide an area in which the capital's sex workers could operate safely.

Police had unofficially tolerated the activities of prostitutes who gathered in Leith since the early 1980s to make it easier for health agencies to regulate the spread of HIV.

The prostitutes were given strict guidelines, such as when they could congregate and how many people would be permitted in the area.

However, the red light area was moved from its former home at Coburg Street after complaints from residents following the gentrification of the area in the late 1990s.

The Salamander Street experiment also provoked opposition from local residents and businesses.

Police say they will now investigate complaints

It now remains to be seen where the prostitutes will seek to ply their trade.

A City of Edinburgh Council steering committee is currently looking for a new location.

Duddingston councillor Ian Berry has said he was approached by police with a view to setting up a tolerance zone in his ward, but this has been ruled out following an outcry by residents.

Support group Scotpep fears that the clock will be turned back 20 years to a time when the sex industry created huge health problems and led to crimes like serious assault and even murder.

In private, police sources agree with that view.

But the Lothian and Borders force stressed that, from Saturday onwards, any complaints against prostitutes from people in Leith would be investigated and dealt with.

Steering committee

Edinburgh City Council says it is sympathetic to continuing a tolerance zone in the capital, but there are legal limitations to the support it can give.

Scotpep project manager Ruth Morgan-Thomas said she hoped a new zone could be found soon.

The advisor to the steering committee said she was "disappointed" that the Salamander Street zone was to be closed - but praised police for their work in the area.

"It's not their fault. Their hands have been tied by residents who were threatening a judicial review to get us out because prostitution is, after all, illegal," she said.

"The police have worked hard to build up a relationship and trust with us and have treated us with respect and have kept the pimps and pushers and women-beaters away."