Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what procedures her Department has in place to ensure that reliable victim evidence can be gathered and presented in court during prosecutions for trafficking.

The Government funds the Adult Human Trafficking Care and Co-ordination contract which ensures that potential victims of trafficking receive
appropriate care and support once they have been identified. As part of this contract and in compliance with our international obligations (Council of Europe Convention and the EU Directive on Trafficking in Human Beings), the Home Office has made it a core requirement for the Contractor to provide assistance to victims at appropriate stages of criminal proceedings against offenders. The Contractor is also required to cooperate with the police and judicial service in order to assist in the prosecution of potential offenders particularly when requests for information are made.

Such assistance includes:
• explaining to victims the relevant procedures relating to the prosecution of offenders;
• encouraging victims to cooperate with any police enquiries and with the wider justice system.
• explaining to victims where relevant, what role they will have in court proceedings; and
• facilitating access to independent legal support for victims and where appropriate assisting victims to apply for Legal Aid.

In addition, the police have raised awareness amongst its officers about the need to ensure that victims are at the centre of any modern slavery
investigation, this awareness includes how to conduct interviews with traumatised potential victims in order to ensure that they are able to provide
the most comprehensive information required to assist in prosecutions.