The latest National Crime Agency (NCA) statistics paint a stark picture of the rate of human trafficking in the UK.

5145 potential victims of human trafficking were submitted to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) in 2017 – a 35% increase on 2016’s figures, making it a record number in the UK.

Reporting showed that potential victims of trafficking were from 116 different nationalities in 2017, but UK, Albanian and Vietnamese nationals remain the most commonly reported potential victims.

The most common exploitation type recorded for potential victims exploited as adults and minors was labour exploitation, which also includes criminal exploitation, accounting for 2,353 cases and almost half of all referrals. In a third of cases (1,744) it was suspected that the person had been a victim of sexual exploitation.

Minor exploitation referrals in the UK increased 66% to 2118 in 2017, compared to 1278 in 2016.

Out of the 5145 potential victims referred to the NRM in 2017, 207 were referred to Scotland for crime recording purposes, 193 to Welsh forces and 31 to Northern Ireland. The remaining 4714 were referred to English police forces.

Although there are a record number of potential human trafficking victims in the UK, the conviction rate for human traffickers is staggeringly low. Many leading charities who work directly with victims of trafficking put this down to the fact that victims still do not feel safe enough to give evidence in court because of their vulnerability and the lack of support they are provided. If you have no where to live, and don’t know where your next meal will come from, you are not going to prioritise giving evidence in court.

Conservative Peer, Lord McColl of Dulwich’s Modern Slavery (Victim Support) Bill, which has its Committee Stage in the House of Lords today will address this. The Bill proposes 12 months leave to remain in the UK with the provision of support to help confirmed victims of modern slavery recover from their ordeal. The Bill has won supporters from right across the political spectrum and will be taken through the House of Commons by the Chairman of the Work and Pensions Select Committee, Labour MP, Frank Field.

CARE Chief Executive Nola Leach

“This data may show how prevalent human trafficking is within our society, but it neglects to tell the full story – of how many victims of trafficking end up back in the hands of their traffickers after they have been through the NRM system because of a lack of adequate victim support.”

“At the moment potential victims of trafficking are offered 45 days support while they are in the National Referral Mechanism which determines whether or not they are a victim of modern slavery. Those who are confirmed to be genuine victims are then given 14 days support from the point of that decision. The Government has recently announced its intention to increase the 14 day period to another 45 days. This, however, is still not nearly enough time for a victim to get the specialist support they need to recover from their trauma and begin to rebuild their lives.”

“Unsupported victims find it hard to act as witnesses. Cases have been reported of victims becoming homeless after leaving the safe house and police being unable to trace them to take their testimony. If we want the trafficker to be punished and convicted, then we must support the victims.”

Nola Leach concludes, “There is a Bill on the table right now which has the power to protect victims of trafficking from further exploitation and offer them the support they need to rebuild their lives. We must not shy away from this opportunity. The Government should throw its full support behind Lord McColl’s Modern Slavery (Victim Support) Bill.”

Ends

Notes to the editor:

For more information please contact Rachael Adams on 020 7227 4731 / 07581 153 693 or rachael.adams@care.org.uk

To read the National Crime Agency’s Latest Report on Human Trafficking, please click here.

To access the Modern Slavery (Victim Support) Bill please click here: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/lbill/2017-2019/0004/18004.pdf

About CARE

CARE seeks to uphold human dignity and to support the most vulnerable people in society. We raise awareness of human trafficking and work for changes in the law and Government policies across the UK Parliaments and Assemblies. Our work on human trafficking focuses on these areas: tackling the demand for human trafficking for sexual exploitation, ensuring that people who have survived exploitation are given adequate care and protection and the provision of special support for child victims.

The Bill is supported by the Free for Good campaign. For more information go to: http://freeforgood.org.uk/– The UK’s campaign for supporting victims of slavery to live free for good.

The Free For Good website has a range of tools for the public to find out more about the Bill, how those concerned can get involved and how they can support this ground-breaking campaign. It helps visitors contact their MP about the Bill and highlights the positive impact it would have on current victims of modern slavery.