Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential effectiveness of (a) UN sanctions targeted at individuals or organisations who are identified as being responsible for modern slavery and human trafficking of African refugees and migrants in Libya and other African states, and (b) an EU-funded scheme enabling greater voluntary repatriation of migrants currently held in detention camps in Libya; and if he will make a statement.

The Prime Minister has made tackling modern slavery a foreign policy priority, and in September this year launched a Call to Action to End Forced Labour, Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking, committing to doubling UK aid spend in support of this objective to £150 million. We are determined to work with our international partners to hold to account those acting with impunity in Libya, including through sanctions against those who are complicit in serious human rights abuses and violations. The Prime Minister has already committed to increasing efforts to tackle smuggling and trafficking in Libya through building the capacity of Libyan law enforcement agencies, and supporting efforts to sanction people smugglers at the UN. We also support the Declaration from the EU-Africa Summit on this issue. UK programming has enabled the assisted voluntary return of over 1,400 migrants from Libya this year, and we support further efforts in this area, including by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa.​