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Slavery: Victims

Asked by Lisa SmartLiberal DemocratHome OfficeTabled Answered 6 May 2025UIN 48204

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of lifting the ban on people in the National Referral Mechanism working if they have been waiting for a decision for over three months.

Answered by Jess Phillips

An individual’s right to work depends on their immigration status in the UK. Many victims of modern slavery already have the legal right to work owing to being British or due to having pre-existing leave to remain for another reason.

Victims with a right to work in the UK can do so while continuing to receive support through the National Referral Mechanism (NRM).

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