(The Secretary of State for the
Home Department): Today I am laying before the
House the final report of the Independent Review of the Modern
Slavery Act 2015 (CP 100).
Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, the Rt Hon MP, the UK has transformed its
response to modern slavery over the last five years. The Modern
Slavery Act 2015 was the first legislation of its kind in the
world. The Act provided law enforcement with new tools and powers
to apprehend perpetrators, new duties on businesses to publish
transparency in supply chains statements, enhanced protections
for victims and created the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner
role. The impact of the Act is evident: more victims than ever
before are being identified and supported, more offenders are
being prosecuted and convicted and thousands of companies have
published transparency statements and are taking action to
prevent slavery and trafficking in their supply chains.
Alongside the Act, this Government is delivering a comprehensive
programme of policy measures to tackle modern slavery. We are
reforming the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) to improve the
support available to victims and to streamline the
decision-making process. We are continuing to hold businesses to
account on their obligations to publish transparency statements
and central Government departments will publish a transparency in
supply chains statement this year, to set out the steps we are
taking through public procurement to prevent the risks of modern
slavery in our supply chains. We are also working with
international partners to drive action to address modern slavery
risks in supply chains and public procurement.
We continue to play a leadership role internationally, pushing
for co-ordinated action to deliver the Sustainable Development
Goals on modern slavery, supported by a commitment of £200
million of UK aid, as well as building partnerships with
countries from where the UK receives high numbers of victims. To
build on this work, the Government recently awarded a further £5
million in grants to seven organisations through the Modern
Slavery Innovation Fund to trial new and innovative approaches to
tackle this heinous crime.
However, this Government is not complacent, and we are determined
to lead global efforts to eradicate modern slavery, particularly
as the methods used by criminals to exploit vulnerable people and
our understanding of the crime evolves. That is why in July 2018
I commissioned rt hon MP, rt hon MP and the noble GBE to conduct
an independent Review of the Modern Slavery Act. The Review
considered four themes relating to provisions in the Act: the
Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner, transparency in supply
chains, legal application and the Independent Anti-Slavery
Commissioner. The final report has made a total of 80
recommendations.
I am grateful to the reviewers and all of those who contributed
to the Review for their commitment and comprehensive analysis.
The Government intends to consider all recommendations in depth,
before making a formal response in summer 2019
