Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of expanding the support provided by the Independent Child Trafficking Advocates service to all unaccompanied and separated children.

Independent Child Trafficking Advocates (ICTAs) support children who have potentially been trafficked. Section 48 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, which makes provisions for ICTAs, is being examined by the Independent Review of the Modern Slavery Act led by Frank Field, Baroness Butler-Sloss and Maria Miller.

The aim of the review is to report on the operation and effectiveness of, and potential improvements to, provisions in the Modern Slavery Act 2015, which provides the legal framework for tackling modern slavery. A link to the terms of reference can be found https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/modern-slavery-act-2015-independent-review-terms-of-reference/review-of-the-modern-slavery-act-2015-terms-of-reference

The Government will consider carefully any recommendations about ICTAs which come out of the review.