Read Ross' letter on the Illegal Migration Bill

Last week, Members of the House of Lords debated the Illegal Migration Bill at second reading. Following the debate, CARE's CEO, Ross Hendry, had the following letter published in the Telegraph.

Of particular concern in this debate is the way the government routinely seems to suggest people smuggling and human trafficking are the same.

But they're not. The former involves someone paying a smuggler to be transported across borders. The latter means someone is relocated against their will.

SIR – I serve as CEO of a charity that was heavily involved in the passage of dedicated anti-slavery laws in the UK, including the Modern Slavery Act.

The fierce backlash to the Illegal Migration Bill in Parliament this week, including an intervention by the Archbishop of Canterbury and staunch criticism from Conservative politicians, underlines just how controversial the Government’s small boats plans are.

We are deeply concerned about the potential impact of the Bill as it stands. Ultimately, the approach being taken by ministers will result in genuine victims being deported and handed back into the hands of traffickers.

We also reject the way human trafficking and people smuggling have been lumped together as if they are the same. They are not. People smuggling involves paying for someone – usually in a gang – to smuggle you into a country illegally. Human trafficking involves coercion, abuse and exploitation. The two are distinct and separate crimes. Blurring these lines risks genuine victims not being identified and thereby receiving the help they need to recover from trauma.

Along with many other expert groups in the trafficking sector, we urge the Government to think again regarding elements of the Bill to do with human trafficking. At the very least, ministers must ensure that victims are granted support and leave to remain until their claim can be properly assessed.

If the Government fails to listen to concerns and maintain the integrity of modern slavery laws, it risks a serious moral failure affecting some of the most vulnerable people in our country.

Ross Hendry
CEO, Christian Action Research and Education
London SW1