11 Trafficking in human beings
| (a)
(26961)
13590/05
COM(05) 514
(b)
(26958)
12402/05
—
|
Commission Communication: Fighting trafficking in human beings — an integrated approach and proposals for an action plan
Draft action plan on trafficking in human beings
|
| Legal base | — |
| Document originated | (a) 18 October 2005
(b) 26 October 2005
|
| Deposited in Parliament | (a) and (b) 28 October 2005
|
| Department | Home Office |
| Basis of consideration | EM of 3 November 2005
|
| Previous Committee Report | None
|
| To be discussed in Council | December 2005
|
| Committee's assessment | Politically important
|
| Committee's decision | (a) Cleared
(b) Not cleared; further information awaited
|
Background
11.1 Title VI of the EU Treaty makes provision for police and
judicial cooperation between Member States to prevent and combat
crime, including trafficking in human beings.
11.2 Article 1(1) of the Framework Decision on combating
trafficking in human beings requires Member States to ensure that
the following acts are punishable:
"the recruitment, transportation, transfer,
harbouring, subsequent reception of a person, including exchange
or transfer of control over that person, where:
(a) use is made of coercion, force or threat,
including abduction, or
(b) use is made of deceit or fraud, or
(c) there is an abuse of authority or of a position
of vulnerability, which is such that the person has no real and
acceptable alternative but to submit to the abuse involved, or
(d) payments or benefits are given or received
to achieve the consent of the person having control over another
person
for the purpose of exploitation of that person's
labour or services, including at least forced or compulsory labour
or services, slavery or servitude, or
for the purposes of the prostitution of others
or other forms of sexual exploitation, including pornography".[37]
11.3 In November 2004, the European Council approved
a five year programme to strengthen freedom, security and justice
in the EU (the Hague Programme).[38]
The Programme invites the Council and the Commission to devise
a plan in 2005 for the development of common standards, best practices
and mechanisms to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings.[39]
Document (a)
11.4 The Commission's Communication is intended to
contribute to the plan requested in the Hague Programme. It proposes
action under the following headings:
(i) "The fundamental concern: the protection
of human rights"
The Commission suggests that the protection of the
rights of victims of trafficking should be the fundamental to
the EU's policy. Among other things, the Commission advocates
a Council debate, at least once a year, on EU anti-trafficking
policy and the compliance of the policy with human rights; it
also calls for the protection of human rights to be emphasised
in discussions with third countries about trafficking.
(ii)"The organised crime dimension"
The Commission comments on the connections between
trafficking in human beings and other forms of serious organised
crime, such as money laundering. The Communication goes on to
call, for example, for law enforcement authorities to give the
prevention and detection of trafficking the same priority as action
against other forms of organised crime; and for Member States
to ensure that their law enforcement authorities involve Europol
and Eurojust in the investigation and prosecution of trafficking.
(iii) "The illegal migration dimension"
The Commission notes that trafficking in human beings
often involves illegal action to bring people into the area of
the EU. It calls, therefore, for the prevention and detection
of trafficking to be strengthened through action by Member States,
in cooperation with the European Agency for the Management of
the External Borders, to improve the control of inward migration;
and, for example, for biometric identifiers to be included in
visas and residence permits.
(iv) "Specific groups, especially women and
children"
The Commission notes that women and children are
particularly at risk and calls for special attention to be given
to action to protect them from trafficking.
(v) "Reliable data"
The Commission says that reliable data on trafficking
are not available. It calls for action to improve the comparability,
reliability, collection and analysis of relevant information.
(vi) "Cooperation and coordination"
The Communication proposes better cooperation between
public authorities and non-governmental bodies to increase awareness
of trafficking and to prevent it. The Commission also says that
it will examine mechanisms to develop minimum EU-wide standards
and benchmarks and ways to evaluate Member States' anti-trafficking
policies. Moreover, cooperation with third-countries and international
organisations should be strengthened.
Document (b)
11.5 Document (b) is a draft of the Action Plan requested
in the Hague Programme. It has been drawn up by the UK Presidency.
It takes account of the Commission's Communication (document (a)),
Member States' comments on a previous draft and a recent conference
on trafficking in human beings.
11.6 The Plan itself is prefaced by the draft of
a statement of principles on dealing with trafficking. In summary,
the statement proposes that:
- "EU action should be focused
on improving our collective understanding of the issues and joining
up our efforts to maximise our effectiveness.
- The EU recognises the importance of taking forward
a Human Rights and Victims-Centred approach.
- The EU should strengthen its operational response
to trafficking in human beings.
- Member States should find more and more intensive
ways of taking forward cooperation".
11.7 The draft Action Plan has eight sections (on
the coordination of EU action; scoping the problem; preventing
trafficking; reducing demand; investigating and prosecuting; protecting
and supporting victims; returns and reintegration; and external
relations). Each section sets out objectives, the action to be
taken, the timetable for action, the body responsible for action
(for example, the Commission, Europol or Member States) and how
the performance of the action is to be assessed. For example,
one of the entries in the section on coordination of EU action
proposes:
"To establish common priorities to enable
better targeted EU level action. To improve the effectiveness
of EU action.
Member States to share lists of priority origin
and transit countries and most frequently encountered routes.
Assessment tool/Indicator
Member States to have shared information with
Presidency by the end of April 2006".
11.8 The Presidency stresses that the Action Plan
and the statement of principles should be regularly reviewed,
revised and updated.
The Government's view
11.9 The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at
the Home Office (Mr Paul Goggins) tells us that the UK Presidency
has aimed, so far as possible, to base the draft Action Plan on
the document (a). Neither the Communication nor the Action Plan
(when adopted) will be binding on Member States. But the Government
would expect the Action Plan to direct future work at EU-level
and that it will be the Plan, rather than the Communication, which
will be implemented.
11.10 The Minister says that some parts of the Communication
cannot be translated into items in the Action Plan. The Plan focuses
on action where the EU can add value. He recognises that the "Assessment
tools/Indicators" proposed in the Plan are more about monitoring
activity than actual impact. This is because not enough reliable
and consistent data is available at the moment. One of the objectives
of the Plan is to improve the availability and quality of data;
when it has improved, it should be possible to develop better
performance indicators.
11.11 The Minister tells us that the majority of
the actions proposed in the Plan would be the responsibility of
a specific body — such as Europol or the Commission —
and he would expect, therefore, that the actions would form part
of the body's annual work programme and be funded from existing
budgets. There should not be significant resource implications
for Member States.
11.12 Finally, the Minister says that the UK Presidency
is aiming for the adoption of the Action Plan at the meeting of
the Justice and Home Affairs Council on 1 and 2 December. It is
likely, however, that a revised draft will be deposited for scrutiny
in mid-November.
Conclusion
11.13 We wish to emphasise our abhorrence of trafficking
in human beings and, therefore, the importance we attach to the
proposed Action Plan.
11.14 We welcome the pragmatic approach of the
draft Action Plan. As the Minister says, the performance indicators
are, in the main, measures of activity rather than impact. But
we accept that this may be unavoidable until more reliable and
consistent data about trafficking in human beings is available.
We note that a revised draft of the Plan is likely to be deposited
soon. Meanwhile, we shall keep document (b) under scrutiny.
11.15 The Commission's Communication overlaps
with the draft Action Plan and has, in effect, been overtaken
by it. We see no need, therefore, to keep document (a) under scrutiny.
37 Framework Decision 2002/629/JHA: OJ No. L 203, 1.8.2002,
p.1. Back
38
See (25730) 10249/05: HC 38-iv (2004-05), para 17 (19 January
2005). Back
39
Hague Programme, section 1.7.1, last paragraph. Back
| 
