Baroness Ludford: ...”.—[ Official Report, 7/6/2023; col. 1542.] We are all in favour of facilitating prosecutions. That is one of the reasons why we have been so dismayed by the provisions on victims of modern slavery and trafficking. Another reason is that there is nothing in the Bill to enhance the prosecution of smugglers and traffickers. Suddenly the Minister came out with this route which is supposed...
Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle: ...Stroud, is terribly important. There is a real reflection to be made. We often hear in your Lordships’ House great praise for the Act passed through this Chamber centuries ago on the abolition of slavery. Yet there is a great deal of concern about the fact that there was just one very short paragraph that addressed what would happen to the former slaves, and paragraphs and paragraphs...
Sarah Dines: ...with a range of partners across the statutory, charitable and private sectors, to tackle and prevent child sexual exploitation, child criminal exploitation, child financial exploitation and modern slavery, both nationally and regionally. The Government also funds the Vulnerability Knowledge and Practice Programme which identifies and shares best practice across police forces, the Tackling...
Jeremy Quin: ...to make it easier to reject bids from suppliers whose performance on previous contracts has been unacceptable, or who have been involved in serious wrongdoing, such as fraud, collusion or modern slavery. Crucially, on Report, we introduced a package of vital amendments that will protect our national security and ensure that public contracts do not go to suppliers who pose a risk to our...
Jane Hutt: ...the human rights convention—but also, it's unworkable. It will actually continue to leave many people in limbo, it'll undermine other Home Office priorities to prevent illegal working or modern slavery within the UK. Now, I have laid out in my statement, again, of 31 March the safe and legal routes way in which we can address—and the way in which the UK Government should be...
Alex Burghart: ...amendment is unnecessary. We have already made explicit provision for a new discretionary exclusion ground to disregard bids from suppliers that are known to use forced labour or perpetuate modern slavery themselves or in their supply chains when that has occurred in the last five years. Furthermore, we have expanded the scope of the mandatory exclusion grounds for serious labour...
Lord Bellamy: ..., I will try to outline these clauses and answer the questions that have arisen as we go through. The first thing the Bill does is to render certain claims —protection of human rights and modern slavery claims—non-suspensive so that making them does not delay the removal of an illegal migrant to a safe third country. However, the Bill then provides safeguards for removal in two cases:...
Lord Paddick: My Lords, as the noble Lord, Lord Coaker, said when he introduced this group of amendments, it is quite extraordinary to deny assistance and support to the victims of modern slavery, as provided by Section 50(1)(a) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. As the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Durham said, it is cruel to do this. Modern slavery is a devolved matter in relation to the support...
Lord Bellamy: ...is. I turn now to Amendment 92A, tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Alton, and moved by the noble Baroness, Lady Ludford, which seeks to make provision for legal aid for potential victims of modern slavery subject to removal for possible referral to the NRM. In the Government’s view, this amendment is not required, as Clause 54 already provides free legal advice for anyone issued with a...
Lord Randall of Uxbridge: I wonder whether my noble friend would consider my invitation. If I can arrange it, will he come with me to meet a victim of modern slavery, so he can actually see the people we are talking about who would be potentially affected by this?
Baroness Lister of Burtersett: ...for Migration, the UN migration agency, explained that “Migration from Albania is a complex picture”, but that nevertheless “the claims about Albanians abusing the asylum and modern slavery systems are not supported by evidence, rather they are damaging and unhelpful”. Binding country guidance case law, according to ILPA, confirms that there can be risk of persecution in Albania....
Robert Jenrick: The objective of the modern slavery provisions in the Illegal Migration Bill is to address the serious and immediate threat to public order in the UK, arising from exceptional circumstances relating to the illegal entry and dangerous journeys made by individuals into the UK which creates additional pressure on public services. We will continue to monitor NRM waiting times and the impact the...
Jim Shannon: ...from (a) detention and (b) removal from the UK for people who have (i) entered the UK illegally as a result of trafficking and (ii) been referred to the police as a potential victim of modern slavery under the National Referral Mechanism.
Stephen Doughty: ...more than 16,000 judgments across a range of issues, not just the few that get highlighted in the media. Such issues include the right to life; the prohibition of torture; the prohibition of slavery and forced labour; the right to liberty and security; the right to a fair trial; the right to private and family life; freedom of religion; freedom of expression; the prohibition of...
Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she has taken to provide safeguarding processes for (a) victims of modern slavery and (b) other vulnerable adults arriving in the UK.
Lord Murray of Blidworth: ...detention for any particular groups of people. Amendment 76B, again tabled by the noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, seeks to create an exemption to immigration detention for potential victims of modern slavery. When decisions are currently made regarding detention or continued detention, potential victims of modern slavery are considered under the existing adults at risk in immigration...
Baroness Brinton: My Lords, Amendment 70A in this group is in my name and also signed by my noble friend Lord German. It is focused on the protection of unaccompanied migrant children and child victims of modern slavery. Picking up on the theme from the noble Baroness, Lady Chakrabarti, I want to make a brief reference to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Article 22 on refugee children...
Deidre Brock: ...physical and sexual violence, persecution, torture, human rights abuses and extreme poverty. Their perilous journeys to the UK have exposed them to exploitation, human trafficking and modern slavery. Two years ago, when the Home Office started to house unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in hotels, we were told that it was on a short-term, emergency basis until permanent placements could...
Lord Coaker: ...the noble and learned Lord, Lord Etherton, say—there are countries listed in Schedule 1 where it cannot in any sense be confirmed that an asylum seeker who is gay will be safe. Victims of modern slavery and trafficking will potentially be returned. Fundamentally, Clauses 5 and 6 and Schedule 1 mean that there is no case-by-case assessment of the individual rights of an asylum claim, and...
Patrick Grady: ...wanting to seek refuge elsewhere? And yes, they include thousands of people who have arrived here on small boats in recent of years, hundreds of whom have been referred for assessment under modern slavery legislation. But the Government want to make those people—men, women and children who are fleeing the oppression that we have heard about repeatedly in today’s debate and who are...
