Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the first successful use of the statutory defence under section 22 of the Human Trafficking and Exploitation Act (NI) by an individual who had been found not to be a victim of human trafficking by the Home Office under the NRM process, if the Home Office will review how it handles such cases to ensure individuals found to be victims of human trafficking by the judicial system can be protected and their rights upheld.

The criminal justice system and NRM are distinct and separate systems. Sec-tion 45 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, which provides an equivalent statutory defence as section 22 of the Human Trafficking and Exploitation Act (NI) has recently been the subject of an independent review in the Modern Slavery Act. The Government is considering carefully how it will respond to the recommendations of the review.

In addition, the Home Office already operates a process that allows negative NRM decisions to be reconsidered in light of new evidence. Reconsiderations are accepted on a case-by-case basis.