Our managing director Philippa Southwell has recently spoken to the BBC and LBC radio, and has expressed concerns about the Government’s failure to appoint an Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner (IASC) to succeed to Sara Thornton.
The role of the IASC is set out in the Part 4 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. The IASC is a UK-wide remit to encourage good practice in the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of modern slavery offences and the identification of victims.
Although the role is a legal requirement under the Modern Slavery Act, the post has now been vacant for more than 8 months.
The main concern is that, without IASC, the government can push through legislation without having the necessary scrutiny over potential modern slavery issues.
Sara Thornton, who was appointed by the Home Secretary in May 2019, departed in April 2022, frustrated by the Government’s groundless claims over asylum seekers’ abuse of the modern slavery safeguards.
