A high profile child prostitution case in Tasmania has reignited debate on the state’s sex industry laws.

Gary John Devine was sentenced last month to a minimum eight years jail for prostituting a 12-year-old girl.

Some in the sex industry are now asking whether a change in laws mooted earlier this decade could have have prevented such a case.

Pamela Browne has been involved in the sex industry for many years.

She has run brothels in Tasmania and later in Queensland when legislation prevented her from operating in her home state.

Ms Browne was involved in the original inquiry into the sex industry in Tasmania and helped prepare several submissions when legislation was being drafted to decriminalise the industry.

At the forefront of the plan was guaranteeing the protection of sex workers and children.

“I guess what we proposed was a fair system,” she said “to keep the industry open, visible, accessible, accountable.”

But in 2005, after seven years and 28 drafts, then Attorney General Judy Jackson backflipped.

With legislation to decriminalise the industry set to be blocked in the Upper House, the proposed laws were changed to shut down brothels and toughen penalties on operators.

Ms Browne believes it was a wasted opportunity.

“There is no perfect system but we could have gone a long way to making a whole lot better system where children are protected.”

The backflip was criticised for putting at risk the people whom the legislation was supposed to protect.

Retired Liberal Member Sue Napier was in Parliament at the time the legislation was passed.

“Most of the Parliament actually wanted a regulated sex industry. That’s not what we got and maybe that’s where we need to go back to.”

Ms Browne is now based in Queensland, where rumours reached her of an underage girl being prostituted in the Hobart area.

“We all assumed 17-ish, thereabouts. We were just absolutely appalled.”

“This is what I pointed out in my submission,” she said.

“That bill specifically said we needed to protect our children. This is not protecting our children.”

“It may have happened in some small backyard capacity but I very much doubt it could ever have escalated to this degree.”

Sue Napier believes it is not an isolated case.

“Thankfully we’ve at least found this one to be able to highlight the problem and, hopefully from this, improve the legislation to be able to help everyone else,” she said.

“When you have a system like this which is totally anonymous, anybody can open up anywhere, anyplace, anytime,” said Ms Browne.

“Where are the checks and balances?”

Ms Browne argues it would not have occurred if the proper legislation had been in place.

She says in some models interstate, in order to advertise services, a business such as a small brothel must be registered and individual operators must have a licence number.

“So by its very nature a person has to be of age or the persons that put that ad in have to have that licence number,” she said.

“So it’s quite scrutinised.”

But the national group representing sex workers disagrees.

The Tasmanian representative for Scarlet Alliance Jade Barker says child exploitation in the state’s sex industry is extremely rare.

“Pamela Browne is confusing Judy Jackson’s proposed legislation around legalising brothels with the registration of individual sex workers,” Ms Barker said.

“Existing business, industrial, planning, health and criminal laws are sufficient to regulate the sex industry.”

“The preventions surrounding this particular case are very separate issues to sex industry legislation.”

“These are a set of very unusual circumstances.”

Last year, a review of the state’s sex laws was completed and tabled in Parliament.

In a statement, the caretaker Attorney General Lara Giddings said “the next step will be for the incoming government”.

Pamela Browne has urged whoever it is to do something with the review.

“In a very sexualised society. I think it’s really about time government stood up, were counted and said, ‘okay it does exist, let’s ensure that right across the board everybody is as relatively safe as we can make them’.”