Source · Select Committees · Home Affairs Committee
Recommendation 83
83
Deferred
Paragraph: 242
Increase legal aid rates and provide enhanced training for solicitors on human trafficking cases.
Recommendation
The Government should also increase the legal aid rate for those dealing with human trafficking cases, not just those which fall under the Illegal Migration Act and should increase training for legal aid solicitors on human trafficking and the National Referral Mechanism process. We recommend that the Government publishes its plans for doing so by June 2024.
Government response summary AI-generated
The government's response addressed ensuring secure accommodation for modern slavery victims through the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract, completely deflecting from the recommendation to increase legal aid rates and training for human trafficking cases.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Paragraph Reference:
242
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government · verbatim extract
Deferred
The Government is committed to ensuring victims are enabled and empowered to engage with the Criminal Justice System. All potential victims of modern slavery with a positive Reasonable or Conclusive Grounds decision have access to legal aid, including criminal and civil legal aid, legal aid for immigration advice, advice on an asylum claim, employment law advice and for a civil claim of damages. As part of measures in the Nationality and Borders Act, as per Immigration Rules Appendix: Temporary Permission to Stay as a Victims of Human Trafficking or Slavery, legal aid will be granted to individuals who are co- operating with police investigations and/or pursuing compensation claims against their traffickers. Upon entering Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract support, support workers ensure that all adult potential and confirmed victims of modern slavery are provided with information on their rights and the services available to them in a language they understand, including how to access legal aid, legal representatives, and legal advice. Equivalent support is provided in detention settings. For child potential victims, local authorities, alongside the ICTG service where it is present, may obtain legal advice or instruct a legal representative to act on the child’s behalf where its considered necessary and appropriate to do so. This advice or representation may relate to the support and care needs of the child, any immigration or criminal proceedings the child is involved in, or circumstances which may be considered to have a detrimental impact on the child.
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