The MSP is seeking prostitution zones

Ms MacDonald's first bill was defeated in the Scottish Parliament at the beginning of the year, by 86 votes to 11.

But the MSP said that much had changed since the first attempt to pass her Prostitute Tolerance Zones (Scotland) Bill.

She said that it was time to forget ideology and start managing the problem of street prostitution with common sense.

Attack fears

The tolerance zone bill was defeated in February largely because councils were reluctant to accept that the police should turn a blind eye to soliciting.

But Ms MacDonald insisted councils like Aberdeen and Edinburgh were crying out for a legal basis for establishing tolerance zones so that street prostitution could be properly controlled.

Prostitutes support group Scotpep said that since the tolerance zone in Edinburgh was abandoned attacks on women had increased from 11 last year to 54 so far this year.

The Scottish Executive has established a prostitution task force but Ms MacDonald said that councils which want tolerance zones should be allowed to introduce them immediately.

Attacks on women working in Edinburgh have risen

She said: "We have now had time to assess the difference between having a tolerance zone and not having a tolerance zone in Edinburgh.

"The authorities dealing with prostitution want to see a basis in legislation from which to develop their policies, as this is the only way anyone has come up with to ensure soliciting is carried out away from residential areas.

"The bill would offer councils and voluntary organisations a legal basis from which to more effectively manage street prostitution, minimising violence, and minimising or eliminating the nuisance to people unconnected, like residents or other people going about their business.

"The challenge for councils would be in identifying a suitable geographical area where in effect soliciting would be decriminalised."

Ruth Morgan Thomas, of Edinburgh-based Scotpep, said the number of women contacting them fell to just 126 last year mainly due to those from the west coast deciding it was safer to work in Glasgow, where although "tolerance" is officially rejected, there is a clearly recognised red light area, monitored by CCTV.

"We now have a much higher level of violence than Glasgow," she added, saying there were three-to-four attacks a week, compared to less than one per month when the zone was in place.