A working red light district in Oxford is just fantasy, claims one of the city's long-serving vice girls.

Speaking to the Oxford Mail, Mary, 50, of east Oxford, laughed off the latest calls for a prostitution tolerance zone.

She said: "It would never happen. People are kidding themselves.

"Even if you said: 'Right, you've all got to stay in the Marston Road area', for example, people would soon be spreading out to other areas, looking for more trade.

"The only thing close to a red light district I've heard of was years ago in Jericho, but I don't know if that was true. And I don't see how the police could control one anyway -- they've got enough to do!"

Mary -- not her real name -- spoke out following calls from local councillors to crack down on illegal street prostitution in the Cowley area.

Sajjad Malik believes the only way to help residents, plagued by noise, condoms and syringes left behind by prostitutes and drug dealers, is to legalise the sex trade, and set up a designated vice district.

But Sabir-Hussain Mirza, who lives in Cowley Road, has rejected legalising prostitution, and called on the police and council to arrest prostitutes and their clients.

Thames Valley Chief Constable Peter Neyroud also condemned the idea of legalising prostitution, saying it could turn Oxford into a 'Sin City'.

Mary, who has never traded on the streets, but offers domination services from a property in east Oxford, agrees tough justice is needed.

She said: "I would not want it happening outside my house, and I can understand people being angry -- it's disgusting leaving syringes where children play.

"Prostitution is the oldest job in the world and will never go away, but the problems start when drugs are involved.

"Many of the girls causing problems in Oxford are addicts who don't care where they work, as long as they get money for their drugs. I've heard that a lot of them are from Kosovo.

"Reputable escort agencies won't take them, because they are addicts, so they have to walk the streets. Many are also handing over half their cash to pimps.

"It sounds pretty conservative I know, but I think the only way to get rid of them is to sling them in jail. I worry about what diseases they could be passing on."

Police, in conjunction with Canact, the city council's Crime and Nuisance Action Team, have given two prostitutes working in the Cowley area ABCs (Acceptable Behaviour Contracts).

Canact manager Steve Kilsby said: "We have officers on foot, cycles and in cars patrolling the Cowley Road area where we have had reports of prostitution.

"We're not just targeting prostitutes, but also the punters. If car registrations are taken down, then officers will visit people's addresses, which could have a huge impact on their family.

"Plain clothes officers have been monitoring the area."