OTTAWA — Canada's most famous sex worker threatened to tell tales on politicians after she was kicked out of a Senate committee for bad behaviour Wednesday.

Dominatrix Terri-Jean Bedford cracked her whip on the desk, told members of the Senate committee to "be quiet" and appeared generally combative in the final exchange between her and the committee chair, Sen. Bob Runcimen, before being escorted out by a handful of security guards.

Outside the chambers, Bedford was asked by reporters to elaborate on which politicians she would expose as having visited sex workers.

"You'll find out," she responded.

Asked for her knowledge on any current parliamentarians known to visit sex workers, Bedford said: "What do you think?" before walking away.

The Supreme Court last December ruled Canada's prostitution laws were unconstitutional and gave the government one year to replace them with new legislation. The Senate committee is spending the week discussing the government's proposed changes that would criminalize the purchase — but not the sale — of sex.

Earlier in the day, Bedford's plea to legalize the industry was shot down by women's groups, who told reporters they support the bill specifically because it proposes to focus criminalization efforts on the men. However, some expressed doubt the bill, if enacted, would be enforced as fully as possible.

Lisa Steacy, of the Canadian Association of Sexual Assault Centres, said police currently tend to focus on women, rather than the johns. And she cited low rates of convictions for those accused of raping of prostitutes.

"We're concerned the law won't be policed effectively," she said.