Supporting trafficking victims is not optional
4 min read
As Russia’s heinous military bombardment of Ukraine continues to escalate, the number of citizens leaving Ukraine has also gathered pace.
Close to one million vulnerable men, women, and children have flocked to neighbouring countries including Poland, Romania, and Hungary to find safety. However, safety is tragically not always what refugees find when they reach the borders of other nations.
Charities have warned that the escalating humanitarian crisis in Eastern Europe is heightening the threat of human trafficking. Criminal elements across Europe are seeking to exploit the vulnerability of displaced Ukrainians to turn a profit. At international borders, gangs offer false promises of safe passage at an exorbitant fee. Those who fall victim find themselves indebted and become vulnerable to further exploitation.
The harrowing situation in Ukraine, and the increased threat of trafficking, will directly affect the four nations of the United Kingdom.
Social policy charity CARE cautions: “We’re dealing with very vulnerable individuals, and human traffickers are going to be seeing this crisis as a business opportunity”. International Justice Mission, an anti-slavery charity that has one of its Field Offices in Romania, has said it is preparing for “increased vulnerability and risk of trafficking of persons”, adding, “while many local people are offering genuine help [at national borders], not everyone is necessarily there to be kind”.
The harrowing situation in Ukraine, and the increased threat of trafficking, will directly affect the four nations of the United Kingdom. In months to come, tens-of-thousands of Ukrainians will arrive through official channels to find peace and safety as they await and pray for an end to the war. Others won’t be so fortunate. They risk being trafficked to our shores by criminals across Europe.
Even those who evade this danger are not guaranteed safety upon reaching our shores. Sadly, criminal enterprises operating domestically could exploit Ukrainian refugees, forcing them into modern slavery. Whether that means the sex trade, forced labour, county lines activity, or domestic servitude. Authorities should be on high alert to the threat of vulnerable people who perhaps do not speak our language, and who are desperate for financial support finding ‘help’ in the wrong places.
Given the situation, we as parliamentarians have a moral duty to ensure the best possible protection and support is afforded to victims of human trafficking and modern slavery. We have good legislation in place – the Modern Slavery Act 2015 – that established various entitlements for confirmed victims.
The Nationality and Borders Bill (NBB) contains provisions on human trafficking and modern slavery. At present, these provisions leave victims of exploitation short of the help they need. The government is wriggling out of an opportunity to provide 12 months of statutory support to genuine victims on the face of the Bill – despite acknowledging this is the minimum level of support needed. And it is refusing to guarantee a temporary right to remain for confirmed victims who hail from other nations who need to access this support.
On Tuesday, I will be tabling an amendment to resolve these serious omissions which I am pleased to say has support from colleagues across the political spectrum. Providing long-term support to victims provides them with sufficient certainty to underpin their recovery, prevent their re-trafficking and to ensure they have the security from which to engage with the police and prosecutors to bring their perpetrators to justice. This would lead to increased prosecutions and convictions; something we all want to see.
The Government has expressed concern about the “abuse of modern slavery protections”. But Ministers must recognise abuse is the exception and not the norm. My amendment would only provide support and leave to remain to individuals, identified as genuine victims by the Government, through their own processes. These people are not ‘bad apples’ seeking to abuse modern slavery protections - they are confirmed victims.
Support and leave to remain go hand in hand. Victims of human trafficking and modern slavery who are not British nationals need leave to access support. My amendment would entitle confirmed victims who are receiving support leave to remain for the length of time they are receiving support. We cannot doom people who we have identified as victims in our country to deportation to places where they fell into the hands of traffickers in the first place. The risk of re-exploitation is acute.
What I will be arguing for this week ought not to be a matter of controversy. The UK is a compassionate nation that already supports victims of injustice by law. It is a welcoming nation that supports foreign nationals who need refuge. The Government has a chance to reaffirm its commitment to these values. I urge them to take it.
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