Chapter 6: Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner
242.Part 4 of the Modern Slavery Act created the post of the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner (“IASC”). This individual works with the government and its partners to ensure modern slavery is effectively tackled in the UK, as well as working with international partners to promote best practice. The first two IASCs were Kevin Hyland OBE (2015–2018) and Dame Sara Thornton (2019–2022). From April 2022 the role was vacant until the appointment of Eleanor Lyons, previously the Deputy Children’s Commissioner, in October 2023.
243.Section 42 of the Act requires the IASC to agree a strategic plan with the Secretary of State and submit an annual report, parts of which may be redacted by the Secretary of State. Eleanor Lyons has written her strategic plan and submitted it to government. She has said it will focus on prevention, on victim identification, the recovery journey and improvements to the NRM, on prosecutions, particularly improving the prosecution rate and making the criminal justice system better for victims to go through, and on improving knowledge and understanding of modern slavery. She intends to highlight groups of potential victims including children and young people, women and girls, UK nationals and those who have been affected by recent legislation and recent changes.304
Appointment
244.Section 40 of the Act requires the appointment of the IASC to be made by the Secretary of State after consultation with the Scottish Ministers and the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland. The Home Secretary has previously made the appointment for a term of three years following a publicly advertised recruitment process.
245.A range of views was expressed on limitations to the IASC’s independence caused by the appointment process. Professor Dame Sara Thornton said that the Cabinet Office should make the appointment because the Home Secretary has a conflict of interest. She added that “a three-year term is insufficient. It should be five or seven years … so that you can act without fear or favour and are not concerned about a contract.”305 The Migrant and Refugee Children’s Legal Unit suggested that appointment should be made by the Home Affairs Committee with a two-thirds majority.306
246.There were comments on the delay in appointment from April 2022 to October 2023. Hope for Justice noted that there was no public explanation for this delay.307 The Anti-Trafficking Monitoring Group mentioned the lack of transparency over an earlier recruitment process being stopped and suggested that there should be a deputy to act as interim IASC in such situations.308 The Modern Slavery and Human Rights Policy and Evidence Centre suggested that there should be a statutory duty to re-appoint an IASC.309
247.The Government defended the current situation. Laura Farris MP pointed out that the Home Secretary also appoints other Commissioners including the Domestic Abuse Commissioner. She added:
“I do not think it is a pure civil service-type role whereby the impartiality has to be absolutely pure. It is really about whether they can rattle the cage and feel absolutely free in how they express themselves. I think that Eleanor Lyons, like Sara Thornton before her, is demonstrating amply that she is able to do that.”310
248.It is disappointing that the role of Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner remained vacant for 18 months without clear explanation. There are possible shortcomings with the independence afforded by the appointment process, particularly the fact that it has previously been conducted by the Home Secretary, as well as restrictions on budgeting and reporting.
249.The Government should require its future candidates for the IASC post to undertake a pre-appointment hearing with the Home Affairs Committee so that there is independent scrutiny of the appointment process.
250.The IASC post role and person specification should continue to require a track record of strategic leadership, a clear vision for the role, and the ability to engage people from across a range of backgrounds and viewpoints. The post-holder should be able to establish a strong public and media profile for modern slavery.
Budget issues
251.Section 40 of the Act requires setting of an annual budget for the IASC. Section 41 defines the role of the IASC as firstly encouraging good practice in the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of slavery and human trafficking offences and the identification of victims and secondly making reports and recommendations, undertaking research, and cooperating with public authorities, including internationally.311
252.Eleanor Lyons related practical difficulties she had encountered since starting in post:
“The kinds of things that I have asked for financially… are for me to be able to start recruiting team members, to pay contracts that may have expired from when my predecessor left the role such a long time ago, and to make sure that I am able to pay for those with lived experience to share their expertise with me as part of the office’s work. Those kinds of areas are challenging at the moment.”
She said she had a team of three temporary staff but was seeking a team of six and was having a conversation with the Home Office about commissioning research but that this would have to continue over the longer term.312
253.Others expressed concerns over the IASC’s budget. The Modern Slavery and Human Rights Policy and Evidence Centre wrote that “we do not think it is feasible within the IASC’s current budget for the Commissioner to directly fund any substantial pieces of new research.”313 Professor Dame Sara Thornton told us that when she was IASC:
“I had a team of eight, and they worked very hard … I do not see how you could do the job without that level of resourcing. The Home Office has not increased the budget certainly since 2019, and I have a suspicion that it has not increased it since 2015.”314
254.The previous government offered reassurance on resourcing. Joanna West said they were “working closely with the Commissioner to make sure that she has the appropriate support and resourcing in place and that there are staff in post who can support her.”315 She said the IASC’s budget for 2024–25 was £597,000 and that this is £52,000 more than in 2021–22.316 Rebecca Wyse, Joint Director of Tackling Abuse and Exploitation at the Home Office, told us that the IASC requires Home Office authorisation for recruitment to ensure affordability but the Department does not get involved in how the IASC chooses staff.317 In May 2024, Laura Farris MP noted that the IASC had never raised the issue of resourcing with her and was on track to recruit the six members of staff she wanted.318
255.It is disappointing that the IASC has experienced practical difficulties in performing her role. These have partly been due to the delay in re-appointment and it is reassuring that they are being addressed. The role requires a significant amount of resource to be performed effectively, not only for staff but also for advice from those with lived experience and the commissioning of independent research for example concerning new developments, international comparators, and prevention.
256.The Government should ensure that the IASC’s budget is sufficient for the Commissioner’s responsibilities, in particular given changes in the modern slavery landscape and the need for prevention. The Commissioner should be able to continually monitor international good practice on modern slavery.
Government engagement
257.Section 43 of the Act requires public authorities to co-operate with the IASC in any way that the IASC considers necessary for the purposes of their function. These include law enforcement, local government, health bodies, and regulators. In practice the IASC also works with others including government departments, charities, and those with lived experience.319
258.The IASC reported largely positive engagement with government. She said that she has found the policy team at the Home Office “to be very collaborative and engaging with me in sharing the areas that they are working on.”320 She told us of the important role the Department for Business and Trade had to play and of the commitment of Minister Nus Ghani to tackling modern slavery. She mentioned engagement with the Ministry of Justice, Foreign Office, and Department for Work and Pensions, saying that she has “not found a fantastic level of awareness existing within those departments” but that “conversations are proving collaborative and constructive.”321
259.Although the sector suggested there had generally been beneficial relationships with the IASC previously, gaps were identified concerning business. techUK told us that “engagement has been poor with the private sector on forced labour and supply chains.”322 Dr Katherine Christ, Senior Lecturer in Accounting at the University of South Australia, and Professor Roger Burritt, Honorary Professor at the Australian National University, wrote that “the Commissioner’s role for stronger engagement with the business sector needs building up” in the context of the Department for Business and Trade’s “lack of enthusiasm to focus on modern slavery via trade in international supply chains.”323 Nottingham Trent University said there was a lack of clarity over the IASC’s relationship with labour market enforcement agencies and regulators such as the Director of Labour Market Enforcement in the Department for Business and Trade.324
260.The Government provided its perspective. Laura Farris MP said her relationship with the IASC was “really constructive … but I am challenged in it.”325 Joanna West said the government welcomes the IASC’s work across multiple government departments.326 Matthew Davies, Director of Trans-Pacific Negotiations and Policy at the Department for Business and Trade said of working with other departments:
“We would see our role … as working with and supporting the Home Office in delivering or understanding how some of the provisions it has undertaken are to be taken forward. We are available to and work with the Home Office to provide insight from businesses as to what is difficult, or not.”327
261.The IASC office’s engagement with government has generally been positive, although there is a lack of awareness of modern slavery in some departments. There has historically been a limited relationship with business, partly due to this not being clearly articulated. The Department for Business and Trade has been reluctant to take a proactive role in tackling modern slavery despite the importance of its responsibilities concerning forced labour and supply chains.
262.In order to effectively discharge its responsibility for the prevention of modern slavery, the Department for Business and Trade should clarify its relationship with the IASC and define this in the government’s modern slavery strategy.
311 Frank Field et al., Independent Review of the Modern Slavery Act 2015: Final Report (May 2019), p.30: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/803406/Independent_review_of_the_Modern_Slavery_Act_-_final_report.pdf [accessed 11 June 2024]