How does national policy impact survivors of human trafficking?
A note from Lara Bundock, CEO & Founder
If you have been following us for a while, you will know that our mission extends beyond the assistance of individuals in our region; we strive to drive wider policy and practice change and improve support for survivors of trafficking around the UK.
Our unique position allows us to channel first-hand support experiences into shaping national development. Over the last 10 years we have: given evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee on UK survivor care; co-authored the UK Training Framework and Survivor Care Standards; and moved forwards the length of entitlement for long-term support. The current landscape poses formidable challenges, but we remain steadfast in amplifying the voices of those impacted by modern slavery.
Now, more than ever, it is vital that we keep our passionate supporters informed about the issues we face, how they can contribute to the bigger picture and the various ways to advocate for improved rights for survivors. Your unwavering support fuels our drive for a brighter future, and we are immensely grateful for your commitment. We are thrilled to send out our first policy newsletter. It is designed to inform, inspire and equip you in the collective fight for justice. If there’s anything you’d like to hear more about, we’d love to hear from you.
Thank you for championing a better future and standing shoulder to shoulder with us. Together, we can reshape the narrative surrounding survivor support and create lasting change.
Introducing Rachel Dale
What is your role at Snowdrop?
I lead Snowdrop’s training, policy and research work.
What are the highlights of your job?
I love working in a team that is passionate about survivors accessing good quality support. Writing our submission to the Home Affairs Select Committee is a recent highlight – it was a privilege to share Snowdrop’s expertise with a parliamentary body who can influence government policy.
What are the difficulties you face in your job?
Unfortunately, in the current political climate, there is much less consultation with NGOs than there used to be. Reduced communication channels and opportunities for independent scrutiny, combined with damaging rhetoric, is really concerning and makes it more difficult to influence decision-making for the benefit of survivors.
How does your work influence policy?
I work together with other anti-trafficking organisations to monitor, inform and challenge government policy in relation to the needs and rights of survivors of human trafficking. This includes contributing to briefings, such as those published by the Anti-Trafficking Monitoring Group, to help parliamentarians (both MPs and Lords) understand the potential impact of policy and legislation, using examples from Snowdrop’s frontline work.
If you could let the public know one important thing about anti-trafficking, what would it be?
It is important for us to cultivate awareness of the language we use and the language which surrounds us, for example in government and in the media. There is a lot of hostile rhetoric which wrongly blames or demonises victims of trafficking. It is important to remember that survivors of trafficking are individuals, each with their own experience, who did not choose to be trafficked. Each person deserves to be treated with dignity and empowered to live free from the trauma of their past.
The Headlines
Record Number of Potential Victims
- Recent Home Office data showed that 16,938 people were referred as potential victims of modern slavery in 2022, an increase of 33% compared to the previous year.
- Implementation of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 has raised the evidence threshold for individuals to be recognised as potential victims of trafficking. Anti-trafficking organisations are providing training and monitoring the impact on the ground.
Illegal Migration Bill
- Announced in March this year, the Illegal Migration Bill would prevent anyone arriving in the UK through irregular means from claiming asylum in the UK and from accessing protection and support in relation to human trafficking.
- Significant concerns have been raised across many sectors about infringement of human rights and the potential harm in may cause.
- The bill has been voted through the Commons and received criticism in the House of Lords, including the Archbishop of Canterbury who stated it's "morally unacceptable and politically impractical".
Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner
- There has not been an IASC in post for over a year, despite it being a legal requirement under the Modern Slavery Act 2015. This means a lack of independent scrutiny at a time when the government is pushing through multiple draconian reforms relating to protection and support for survivors of human trafficking.
- We are grateful that former IASC, Dame Sara Thornton, continues to speak up for the rights of survivors. However, we would like to see a new IASC in post as soon as possible, so that they can build on her work which included consultation with anti-slavery charities and trafficking survivors.
Explainer: How the Illegal Migration Bill will affect survivors
Numerous voices ranging from NGOs, health and social care, international human rights organisations and members of parliament have expressed concerns around the potential impact of the Illegal Migration Bill. The implications are numerous and far-reaching, so here are a few key points about how it would affect survivors of trafficking:
- Exclusion from protection and support
The bill would exclude almost all potential victims of trafficking who arrive in the UK via irregular means from accessing protection and support via the National Referral Mechanism. Organisations who have reviewed their current caseload of trafficking survivors estimate that 80–90% of those people would have been affected if the Illegal Migration Bill had been in place. - Difficulty leaving exploitation
The bill will increase the risk of people remaining in situations of exploitation. Traffickers will use the very real threat that if they go to the authorities they face being detained and deported. Victims will not have a safe option, whilst traffickers will go unpunished. - Risk of detention and deportation
People will be detained with limited or no access to legal advice and for an indefinite period. They will then be deported to countries deemed to be ‘safe’, despite evidence to the contrary, which may place them in the path of their original or other traffickers, or other persecution. - Increased risk of being re-trafficked
As it will be practically impossible to enforce removals, but people will not have the right to work or to build their life in the UK, thousands will be left in limbo, forced into situations of destitution, unable to recover from trauma and vulnerable to being (re-)trafficked. - Children will also be affected
Children’s deportation will be postponed until their 18th birthday, causing them to grow up living in fear and unable to rebuild their lives. Many will be housed in Home Office run hotels which evidence shows are targeted by traffickers, with over 200 going missing last year. Children born in the UK to parents arriving through irregular means will never have the right to reside in the UK.
To find out more about the potential impact of the bill, click here for a summary produced by the University of Nottingham’s Rights Lab with the Human Trafficking Foundation.
Snowdrop signed an open letter to MPs expressing our concerns and contributed to a briefing for the House of Lords produced by the Anti-Trafficking Monitoring Group to help inform debate. Once the Lords have proposed amendments, the bill will return to the House of Commons for further consideration. There is still time to put pressure on government to do what’s best for survivors.
What can I do?
- Please take a few minutes to write to your MP about the Illegal Migration Bill. Click here for a template that you can copy and paste into an email – feel free to edit and make it your own, or use as written.
- You can also raise awareness by sharing this newsletter or our social media posts around this issue.
- You can volunteer with your local refugee or anti-trafficking charity.
Sometimes it can feel like the forecast is bleak but there are moments of breakthrough and celebration amidst it all, like *Jasmine's story. After 4 years of trying to claim asylum, and being detained twice, Jasmine finally received her refugee status and is now training to be a nurse.
"I hope to become a mental health nurse at the end of it to support people in need. I don’t think I would have been where I am today without the Snowdrop Project. I won’t have survived this whole journey without them. Snowdrop is a mother to the motherless."