Government response on Human Trafficking Disappointing

2.38.01pm GMT Tue 19th Dec 2006

Responding to the Government's Response - published today - to the Joint committee on Human Rights Report on Human Trafficking, Dr Evan Harris MP, Liberal Democrat member of the Committee said:

"The Government's response is a big disappointment since they still fail to agree to sign the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings while not providing any good reason for not doing so".

Dr Harris, who raised this issue with the Prime Minister in July and was told by Mr Blair that he would "reflect again" on the matter, added:

"The Committee pointed out that there was no evidence that adopting convention measures would act as a pull factor for immigration and the Government response today fails to provide any. It is ironic that the convention would require the Government to provide an automatic reflection period for victims of trafficking of up to 3 months, while the Government itself has now been reflecting on whether to sign for well over 12 months.

"This report was about the human rights of victims of trafficking, and the Government's failure to deal with this properly, yet the Government's response hardly mentions human rights.

"This response simply fails to deal with the key issues. For example, we called for security of funding over the long term for the Poppy project which provides specialist accommodation and support for trafficking victims and the Government's response (to recommendation 27) only mentions the existing two years funding.

"Rarely has a response to a select committee report so clearly failed to engage with the issues."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

The Government response to the JCHR report - The Government reply to the twenty-sixth report from the Joint Committee on Human Rights Session 1005-06 HL Paper 245, HC 1127 - was published at 11:00am, Tuesday 19th December 2006.

Dr Harris questioned Tony Blair over signing up to the European Convention on Human Trafficking at Prime Minister's Questions on 19th July 2006.

Wednesday, 19th July 2006

Prime Ministers Questions

Human Trafficking

Q5. [86178] Dr. Evan Harris (Oxford, West and Abingdon) (LD): For what reasons the Government has not ratified the Council of Europe Convention against human trafficking.

The Prime Minister: The UK Government are currently considering the Council of Europe convention against human trafficking agreed last year. At present only one country, Moldova, has ratified that convention, but let me be clear that we are determined to tackle human trafficking. The police have set up the UK Human Trafficking Centre to continue the fight against that crime, and Operation Pentameter resulted in over 150 arrests and the rescue of 75 trafficking victims.

Dr. Harris: I am grateful to the Prime Minister. Thirty of the 45 Council of Europe countries have signed the convention, but we have not done so. The Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, the hon. Member for Gedling (Mr. Coaker), and his officials said in the Joint Committee on Human Rights that the fear of "a pull factor" was preventing the UK Government from signing the convention. But is the Prime Minister aware that in Italy there is no evidence of a pull factor, and a hundred times as many women have been saved and there have been a hundred times as many prosecutions? Will he reflect again for the sake of the victims of trafficking, and allow the UK to sign the convention?

The Prime Minister: I will reflect again. The hon. Gentleman rightly puts his finger on the reason for our refusal to sign and ratify the convention so far. An absolute 30-day reflection period is required for victims who are here without leave, to enable them to recover from the experience that they have been through. Our worry is that, unless we are very careful about the way in which that is implemented, it will cause a major problem with people who come here under the auspices of organised crime and are not proper asylum seekers, as we would be obliged to keep them for a fixed period. I am afraid we have to examine what that means in practice for our system before we can agree the convention.

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Mr. Denis MacShane (Rotherham) (Lab): Last week, the Prime Minister agreed to meet a delegation led by myself on the issue. There is widespread support in the House for the signing-not ratification, which is different-of the convention, as well as widespread support among the police, Anti-Slavery International and Amnesty International. I would rather not meet him, because I do not want to discuss a problem. I would rather that the Home Office provided a solution without too much time passing.

The Prime Minister: I entirely understand what my right hon. Friend is saying, and he made his point in a very reasonable way. I will look at the issue again, but we need an answer on that point. It is not only Britain that has not signed the convention-countries such as Spain have not done so because they, too, are worried about the same problem. However, if we can find a way around it-and we may be able to do so-that would obviously allow us to sign.

The Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings is was opened for signature in Warsaw in May 2005.

Related Links:

JCHR Report on Human Trafficking, 26th report of session 2005-06.

Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings.