The Illegal Migration Bill poses a singular and catastrophic threat, not only to the rights of migrants, including refugees and survivors of trafficking and modern slavery, but to the rule of law, the UK's continued ability to comply with its international obligations, and its very ability to provide international protection.

The ‘Illegal Migration Bill’ creates the conditions for exploitation by criminalising people and denying them even the hope of safety. If the bill passes in its current form people who have been trafficked to the UK will be barred from protections due to the way they entered the UK, even if they were brought in against their will.

‘The UK is undergoing a horrific period of rollback of rights and protections for survivors of trafficking and modern slavery, with the Nationality and Borders Act and now the Illegal Migration Bill. If the Bill passes, we will have literally ripped up our systems of identification, support, and access to justice and remedy and we are tarnished.’

On 15 March, our Policy Manager, Kate Elsayed-Ali, gave oral evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights, which is conducting an inquiry into the human rights of asylum seekers in the UK.

One full year after the government pledged to remove a loophole for the exploitation of mainly female workers, the Family Worker Exemption remains in place. We urge the government to act without further delay to remove this exemption.

Today, ATLEU joined over 100 charities from the anti-trafficking, refugee and children’s sectors, in writing to the Prime Minister to express our grave concern about separated children seeking asylum going missing from Home Office hotels. The children are suspected of being exploited and trafficked.

The Trafficking Compensation Action Group (TCAG) aims to bring together practitioners who conduct trafficking and modern slavery compensation claims, in order to share best practice, improve access to justice and provide each other with advice and support.

Today, UN experts expressed alarm at the UK Government’s use of unevidenced claims and sensationalist language towards survivors of trafficking and modern slavery, stating these attacks on the credibility of survivors and their legal representatives have a “chilling effect.”

We have written to Grant Shapps MP, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, calling on him to deliver on the government’s commitment to remove the ‘Family Worker Exemption’ from National Minimum Wage regulations as a matter of urgency.

Survivors of modern slavery are being left destitute and at risk of exploitation by a crumbling legal aid system that is failing to provide them with the support they need, reveals a new report out today.

A staggering 90% of support workers helping survivors reported that they had struggled to find legal advisors for their clients in the past year, with almost half reporting delays of six months or longer.

‘It has destroyed me’: A legal advice system on the brink is a new report from ATLEU.

Access to legal advice is crucial for survivors of trafficking and modern slavery but the legal aid funding system is failing them. ATLEU’s survey to frontline support and advocacy organisations found a stark and alarming gulf in the availability of legally aided advice for survivors, leading to destitution, trauma, and exposure to further exploitation. In a joint response to a government consultation on immigration legal aid funding, 10 anti-trafficking organisations* call for action to address the causes of this legal advice crisis - the legal aid funding system.

Thirteen civil society organisations and legal aid providers working to end trafficking and modern slavery have called for the removal of the ‘unspent conviction rule’ from the Criminal Injuries Scheme.

We applaud Sir Mo Farah for his courage in sharing his experience of being a survivor of child trafficking and shining a much-needed light on this vital issue. Tragically this experience highlights the harm caused to tens of thousands of men, women and children in the UK who are exploited and subjected to human trafficking or slavery and the nature of child abuse and these serious crimes.