Thousands of potential trafficking victims detained in immigration removal centres, figures show

Ministers accused of failing to protect survivors of modern slavery after new data reveals more than 2,000 people identified as potential victims locked up in less than two years

Campaigners accused ministers of treating potential victims like 'criminals’ on the basis of their immigration status

Thousands of potential trafficking victims have been detained in immigration removal centres in less than two years, new figures show.

Ministers have been accused of failing to protect survivors of modern slavery after new data revealed more than 2,000 people recognised by the government as having indicators of trafficking were placed in detention during a 21-month period.

Campaigners said this demonstrated flaws in the government’s system for identifying and protecting trafficking victims, and accused ministers of treating these individuals like “criminals” on the basis of their immigration status.  

The figures, obtained by data-mapping project After Exploitation and Women for Refugee Women, shows 4,102 people who were detained under immigration powers between January 2019 and September 2020 were referred to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) - the UK’s framework for identifying trafficking victims - before, during or after their detention.

Of these, 2,914 detainees were granted a “positive reasonable grounds” under the NRM, meaning there are reasonable grounds to believe they were modern slavery victims and the case requires further investigation, and 194 have received a “positive conclusive grounds” decision, meaning they are confirmed to be a victim.

The data shows that 969 people with trafficking indicators were detained in 2020 alone, despite the scaling back of detention due to the pandemic.

It comes after ministers refused calls from senior Tories last month to provide immigration protection for trafficking survivors.

Safeguarding minister Victoria Atkins confirmed that she opposed the Modern Slavery (Victim Support) Bill – tabled by Conservative peer Lord McColl – which calls for modern slavery victims of all nationalities to receive a minimum of 12 months’ leave to remain in the UK.

She also rejected calls to prevent the detention of modern slavery survivors, stating in a letter to NGOs that the government would not support the “absolute exclusion from detention for any particular group”.

Former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith, who supports the bill, told The Independent at the time that he was “dismayed” by the response, describing it as “utterly wrong” and accusing officials of prioritising immigration control over the UK’s fight against modern slavery.

In light of the new data, Maya Esslemont, director of After Exploitation, said she was “deeply concerned” by the scale with which potential survivors were being detained.

“The government routinely acknowledges the physical, financial and interpersonal devastation caused by modern slavery, but will not act despite evidence that victims are being treated like criminals as a result of their immigration status,” she said.

“To add insult to injury, the government has also confirmed that it will not provide automatic protection even to survivors who jump through hoops to secure recognition through the trafficking determination process, which sometimes lasts years.  

“In essence, the government is re-traumatising survivors for not having the very immigration status it refuses to provide them.”

Theresa Schleicher, casework manager at Medical Justice, said the figures were likely to be the “tip of the iceberg”.

“We frequently encounter survivors of trafficking in detention who have not been recognised as such by anyone before, despite having gone through the Home Office processes that should have identified them and safeguarded them from detention," she added.

A Home Office spokesperson said the vast majority of the individuals accounted for in the figures were referred to the NRM while in immigration detention or after they had been released, adding: “We consider all cases on an individual and case by case basis, and have safeguards in place which underpin detention decisions."