UK failed in anti-trafficking fight

Britain’s efforts to tackle slavery and human trafficking have resulted in failure, a damning report reveals.

A study to be published on Monday by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), an independent think tank, shows that not enough is being done to address thousands of adults and children who are victims of modern slavery in the UK.

The think tank said it has uncovered a “shocking underworld” of human trafficking and this problem has brought Britain to a “state of crisis”.

It also criticized the British government for its “inadequate response” at the scale of people being sexually exploited through trafficking, calling for a radical overhaul of the system to combat 21st century slavery.

The CSJ investigation found over 1,000 adults and children were trafficked into or within the UK in 2011-2012, warning the figure could be “only the tip of the iceberg”.

Christian Guy, head of the CSJ, accused UK ministers of being “clueless” and described the handling of the problem as a “catastrophic failure”.

“Yet the authorities are either failing to understand the nature of this abuse or turning a blind eye to its existence. Our once great nation of abolitionists is a shameful shadow of its former self,” he added.

Earlier in January, Barnardo’s, the UK’s biggest children’s charity, warned that the number of sexually exploited children in Britain who have been trafficked within the country is increasing.