We are tarnished: ATLEU’s evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights

/

‘The UK is undergoing a horrific period of rollback of rights and protections for survivors of trafficking and modern slavery, with the Nationality and Borders Act and now the Illegal Migration Bill. If the Bill passes, we will have literally ripped up our systems of identification, support, and access to justice and remedy and we are tarnished.’

On 15 March, our Policy Manager, Kate Elsayed-Ali, gave oral evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights, which is conducting an inquiry into the human rights of asylum seekers in the UK.

Appearing alongside the Human Trafficking Foundation, the Salvation Army, and former Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner Dame Sara Thornton, the session was an opportunity to answer questions and brief the Committee on a number of key concerns for survivors of trafficking:

  • Regression in the legal and policy framework on trafficking and modern slavery, particularly the Nationality and Borders Act: View video clip
    The Act is a hugely regressive piece of legislation for access to rights, support and protections for survivors of trafficking. It made extensive and harmful changes , creating more bureaucracy making it far more likely that survivors won’t be identified and protected, won’t access the support they are entitled to, and are at far greater risk of detention and removal.

  • The draft ‘Illegal Immigration Bill’ is literally a gift to traffickers: View video clip
    This is an anti-victim bill. It rips up our obligations under international law, dismantles the UK’s own systems to support survivors of trafficking and deprives survivors of their right to safety and recovery. Traffickers regularly threaten survivors with illegality, detention and deportation if they leave their situation of exploitation; this Bill enshrines these threats in law.

  • The use of unevidenced claims and inflammatory rhetoric against survivors and their lawyers: View video clip
    No evidence has been produced to support statements by the Home Secretary and other government officials that the modern slavery framework is being misused, despite repeated requests from civil society and the Home Office being reprimanded by the Office for Statistics Regulation. We put on record our deep concern at the hostile and inflammatory language being used by the Home Secretary and other politicians against survivors and their legal representatives. It is unfounded, it is unevidenced, it is dangerous and it continues to have real life consequences.

  • The legal advice crisis for victims and survivors of trafficking and modern slavery which is driven by failings in the legal aid system: View video clip
    Our recent report showed a huge gulf between demand and supply with the result that survivors are not able to access quality legally aided advice and representation when they need it, with devastating consequences. A staggering 90% of support workers surveyed by ATLEU had struggled to find a legal aid immigration lawyer for a survivor in the past year and, this year, the situation continues to worsen.

The government should be punishing traffickers, not survivors. View video clip.
We call on them to:

  • Stop scapegoating and demonising survivors and lawyers

  • End the roll back of rights and protections under Nationality and Borders Act

  • Scrap the Illegal Migration Bill

  • Address the legal advice crisis caused by chronic underfunding and a payment system that is simply unfit for purpose.

Watch the full video of our evidence session.
View our written evidence to the inquiry.