Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help prevent and protect against human trafficking and exploitation of vulnerable people in the short-term lettings and stays sector.

The Government is committed to tackling the heinous crime of modern slavery. We are identifying more victims of modern slavery and doing more to bring perpetrators to justice than ever before.

We have also introduced several initiatives aimed at preventing human trafficking and exploitation, these include:

Supporting the police to tackle modern slavery, including dedicated funding totalling £17.8 million since 2016. This funding has supported the Modern Slavery and Organised Immigration Crime Unit, run by Devon and Cornwall Police, to increase police awareness and ability to tackle modern slavery across England and Wales.

Introducing training interventions for frontline services that might encounter victims of modern slavery, making sure operational colleagues such as Border Force can recognise the signs of modern slavery and are equipped to step in.

Between 2016 and March 2023, the Home Office spent over £37m through the Modern Slavery Fund, which has a strong focus on upstream prevention.

The government has not assessed the prevalence of exploitation of workers in the short-term holiday and short-term stays sector.