May record on slavery a cause for shame, says Labour MP

THERESA MAY should be ashamed of her record on protecting child victims of slavery, a Yorkshire MP has said as the PM took personal charge of a new drive against people trafficking.

As Mrs May announced she would chair a taskforce charged with co-ordinating Government policy against modern slavery, and pump an extra £33.5m into trying to combat people trafficking in countries such as Nigeria, Labour warned that her track record was not a cause for optimism.

Rotherham MP and Shadow Minister for Preventing Abuse, Sarah Champion, said: “The new Prime Minister should be ashamed that she hasn’t acted on the protection for children in the Modern Slavery Act.

“Last year, 982 children were identified as victims of modern slavery and taken into local authority care. Within days, 60 per cent of those children went missing, presumed to be back with their traffickers, where they would continue to be exploited and abused. This is simply not good enough.

“Modern slavery is on the increase but under Theresa May’s watch, the police and Border Force have been cut and her Government cut local authorities by over 40 per cent. If Theresa May is serious about tackling slavery, she needs to give professionals the resources to stamp it out.”

With ministers estimating there are 10,000 to 13,000 potential victims of slavery in the UK, Mrs May said she wanted to make the fight against the illicit trade a priority.

A review by barrister Caroline Haughey to mark the first anniversary of the Modern Slavery Act found that 289 modern slavery offences were prosecuted last year, and there was a 40 per cent rise in the number of victims referred for support.

The call came after the UK’s anti-slavery commissioner, Kevin Hyland, warned that people trafficking cases are not being investigated properly.