Independent review of the Modern Slavery Act: process for evidence collection
Published 17 September 2018
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/modern-slavery-act-2015-review-process/independent-review-of-the-modern-slavery-act-process-for-evidence-collection
The government has commissioned Frank Field MP, Maria Miller MP and Baroness Butler-Sloss to run an independent review of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 to strengthen and enhance the current legislation as modern slavery evolves.
The review will consider specific provisions in the act as summarised in the table below and set out in the published terms of reference.
| Review topic | Relevant sections of the act | Specific questions to be addressed (non-exhaustive) |
|---|---|---|
| Transparency in supply chains | Section 54 on transparency in supply chains | How to ensure compliance and drive up the quality of statements produced by eligible companies |
| Role of the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner | Sections 40 to 44 on the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner | How to ensure the independence of the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner |
| Legal application of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 | Section 3 on the meaning of exploitation | How to ensure the act is ‘future-proof’ given our evolving understanding of the nature of modern slavery offences |
| Sections 8 to 10 on reparation orders | How to ensure access to legal remedies and compensation for victims, and whether a specific civil wrong would improve access to compensation for victims | |
| Section 45 on the statutory defence | How to ensure an appropriate balance between the need to protect victims from criminal prosecution and preventing criminals from abusing this protection to avoid justice | |
| Child victims of modern slavery | Section 48 on independent child trafficking advocates | How to ensure the right support for child victims given the changing profile of child victims |
The review will produce a final report by end of March 2019. Ahead of this, the review will produce interim reports on the 4 areas of the review set out above. They will initially focus on transparency in supply chains and the role of the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner.
Evidence collection process
The review has appointed expert advisers who will gather evidence from specific interest groups, the following expert advisers have been confirmed:
| Parliamentarians | Vernon Coaker MP |
| Civil society | Anthony Steen |
| Criminal justice system | Peter Carter QC and Caroline Haughey QC |
| Faith groups | Bishop Alastair Redfern, Chair of the Clewer Initiative |
| Business | John Studzinski and Baroness Young |
| Commonwealth and international | Christian Guy |
| Child trafficking | Professor Ravi Kohli |
The expert advisers will be supported in their role by the review secretariat - you can contact the secretariat at [email protected]
The expert advisers will prioritise gathering evidence on the first 2 topics of the review (transparency in supply chains and the role of the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner), with the aim of publishing interim reports on these topics by the end of November 2018.