Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help prevent girls being groomed in (a) Romania and (b) elsewhere and trafficked to the UK for the purposes of sexual exploitation.

Tackling Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery remains a top priority for this government and we are committed to stamping out this abhorrent crime. Since its introduction, the Modern Slavery Act 2015, has given law enforcement agencies the tools to tackle modern slavery, including maximum life sentences for perpetrators and enhanced protection for victims.

We work with a range of partners, including law enforcement agencies to raise awareness of modern slavery, this includes training interventions for frontline services that might encounter victims of modern slavery and human trafficking, ensuring operational colleagues such as Border Force can recognise the signs of modern slavery and are equipped to step in.

Romania remains a crucial partner in our ambitions to tackle modern slavery globally and to reduce the number of victims, including girls trafficked to the UK for sexual exploitation. We have invested over £200,000 this financial year in a range of projects to strengthen Romanian law enforcement approaches, victim support organisations, and national strategies on trafficking.

Through the Home Office Modern Slavery Fund, we are also working with Nigeria, Albania and Vietnam to prevent people falling into slavery, including girls who are vulnerable to sexual exploitation. Our work in Albania has provided essential reintegration support to 330 victims of trafficking and worked with over 5,000 vulnerable people to prevent exploitation from occurring. A dashboard showcasing the results achieved can be accessed at: http://endhumantrafficking.al/ and can be disaggregated by gender and age.

The Government recognises there is yet more we can do to tackle this crime and bring offenders to justice. We are currently reviewing the 2014 Modern Slavery Strategy – a revised strategy will allow us to build on the progress we have made to date, adapt our approach to the evolving nature of these crimes, and continue our leadership in tackling modern slavery.