Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether a cross-Departmental assessment has been made of the effectiveness of the National Referral Mechanism for preventing the criminalisation of people who have been subject to child criminal exploitation.

The Modern Slavery Act 2015 introduced a statutory defence for victims of modern slavery, to prevent victims from being punished for crimes they were forced to commit. The non-punishment principle is an integral part of the Government’s response to safeguard victims of modern slavery who have been compelled to commit a crime. In the case of an adult, committing the crime as a direct result of being a victim; in the case of a child, at the hands of their exploiters.

The statutory defence operates independently of the National referral Mechanism (NRM), the system for identifying and supporting victims of modern slavery. A referral into the NRM is not a requirement to use the statutory defence.

The effectiveness of the statutory defence was assessed by the Independent Review of the Modern Slavery Act following concerns raised by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the police about its use. The Review found that the defence strikes the correct balance between protecting genuine victims and preventing misuse from opportunistic criminals. However, concerns about the potential misuse of the defence continue to be raised, including by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services in its recent thematic inspection on county lines. That is why we are working closely with the CPS, the police and the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner to monitor this.

Any person who is suspected of being a victim of modern slavery can be referred for support into the NRM. In the case of children, local authorities are responsible for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children in their area and work in close co-operation with the police and other statutory agencies to offer potential child victims the protection and support they require.