Suella Braverman has withdrawn controversial new rules that make it harder for trafficking victims to have their cases accepted, months after introducing them as part of a flagship policy.
The government U-turn has been hailed as a significant victory by trafficking victims.
The home secretary introduced a new policy requiring victims to provide immediate evidence of trafficking in order for the government to deem them a potential victim of slavery, on 30 January.
She said she had to introduce the policy because some trafficking victims were “gaming the system”, although the chair of the home affairs select committee, Dame Diana Johnson, said she was still awaiting comprehensive evidence.
Before the case reached a full high court hearing, the home secretary conceded and withdrew the rules.
Braverman has said she will provide replacement rules by 10 July. Until then she has agreed that no negative reasonable grounds decisions will be made about trafficking victims.
Human rights and anti-trafficking charities had warned the change would lead to the cases of many genuine victims being rejected, leaving them at risk of further exploitation.
Since the rules were introduced, the number of cases recognised as genuine has fallen sharply. Home Office statistics show there has been a significant drop in what are known as positive reasonable grounds decisions, and a corresponding increase in what are known as negative reasonable grounds decisions.
In 2022, 88% of cases received a decision that they were potential victims of trafficking. In the first quarter of 2023 this figure had dropped to 58%.
The challenge was brought by two potential trafficking victims who received negative decisions, despite the Home Office accepting the accounts they provided were credible. They welcomed the home secretary’s withdrawal of the rules.
Shalini Patel, of Duncan Lewis Solicitors, who represented the two potential trafficking victims, said: “This is an incredible win for our clients and many other survivors of trafficking who would have otherwise received negative reasonable grounds decisions as a result of the policy.
“It should have been evident from the outset that the requirement for trafficking survivors to provide objective evidence was always going to be impossible and cause survivors of trafficking to fall at the first hurdle. The impact that a negative decision would have on a survivor of trafficking is huge.
“A negative decision results in a survivor of trafficking being left without any support including accommodation, casework support and financial support and would place them at significant risk of further exploitation.”
A Home Office spokesperson said:“Modern slavery is a barbaric crime. We are committed to tackling it and ensuring victims are given the support they need to begin rebuilding their lives. The national referral mechanism provides support to thousands of victims of modern slavery each year, but some people seek to exploit the system, which is why we have taken steps to prevent this.
“The Home Office regularly updates statutory guidance and we will shortly issue a further clarification to the current guidance on modern slavery claims. We do not comment on ongoing litigation.”
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