One in eight British men visit prostitutes and they are more likely to be churchgoers, middle class or regular overseas travellers, according to new research.
The demand for commercial sex in the UK has been estimated more thoroughly than ever before in an analysis of more than 5,000 British men aged 20 to 74.
It claims 12 per cent use prostitutes – well above the one in ten calculated by earlier studies.
And researchers found men who paid for sex have on average 33 sexual partners – two-and-a-half times more than the 13.4 partners for those who do not.
Study lead author Dr Marilena Locatelli, an economist at the University of Turin in Italy, said: "There are more managers, professionals and skilled workers paying for sex. This is not the case for elementary occupation."
She said this was a surprise, since such men may have more to lose if it becomes known they have paid for sex.
Dr Locatelli said: "Second, belonging to a religion has a significant and negative effect on the probability of not having sex with a prostitute. Again, this result is contrary to our expectation."
She added: "An unexpected finding is that the expected number of times with prostitutes is higher among those who declare that they are religious."
The findings, published in the Scottish Journal of Political Economy, are based on a mathematical model using information from the National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles.
It included 604 participants who said they had been with prostitutes, and 4,429 who said they had not.
Dr Locatelli and co author Dr Steinar Strom, of the University of Oslo in Norway, said there is no other similar comprehensive study of its kind.
The expected number of times with prostitutes was much higher among men travelling abroad, living in London and middle rather than high or low earners.
Dr Locatelli said: "It could be the lower income men cannot afford having sex with prostitutes and the rich men may have too much reputation to lose if they are caught being with prostitutes."
Worryingly, drug users and men who do not use condoms are also more likely to have sex with prostitutes, exposing them to health risks.
The researchers said from a policy point of view, it was interesting to note that the men are less likely to use prostitutes if they had an extensive sex education, which is still not compulsory in schools.
Dr Locatelli said: "To require that sex education at school should be compulsory in all schools could therefore help in reducing prostitution in Britain.
"Moreover, we find that drugs users, and men declaring that they are religious, are more inclined to participate in the sex market.
"We find a strong and significant association between buying sex and being abroad and with living in London.
"We find that men with medium and medium–high income, which indicates a middle class background, are more likely than other men to participate in the sex market."
This ranged from £30,000 to £50,000 a year.
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Dr Locatelli said: "Men with these incomes are typically middle class men.
"Men with a high income, given the professional status, may be more vulnerable socially if observed with prostitutes.
"However, to buy sex could be expensive, and hence, higher income may have a positive impact on participation in the sex market, in particular if sex takes place indoor in hotels and apartments.
"Our estimates partly confirm that latter expectation."
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