Thousands of victims of human trafficking at risk of forcible removal now have the right to recover from the effects of exploitation in the UK, after the Home Office settled a landmark case.
The Home Office said people could receive treatment in their home country, but could also be deported if they were less than halfway through their treatment in the UK.
However, after victims of human trafficking filed a lawsuit, the ministry decided to settle the case and reconsider its decision to deny temporary leave to those in need of treatment.
One of the people who brought the case was a man from Vietnam who was first exploited in Russia, where he was forced to work in a vegetable factory, and then forced to work on a cannabis farm in the UK.
He was beaten and told that his family in Vietnam would be killed if he did not comply with the traffickers’ demands.
The man was later diagnosed with PTSD, depression and anxiety after escaping and was refused temporary leave to remain in the UK, despite an expert medical report finding he would not have access to appropriate mental health care in Vietnam.
Sophie Chadd and Angelo Monni, two lawyers from Duncan Lewis representing victims of human trafficking in the case, said: “This is a significant victory for a vulnerable and deeply traumatised group of people who were failed by the previous government’s approach, which left survivors of modern slavery in a limbo… at high risk of being re-trafficked and unable to recover from the effects of their exploitation.”
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In another case, brought by an asylum seeker from Sudan who was trafficked in Libya, the Ministry of the Interior admitted that decisions on the cases of trafficking victims had been unlawfully suspended because they were on a list of people to be transferred to Rwanda.
The pause, which has not been acknowledged until now, lasted more than a year and ended in April 2024.
Rachel Etheridge of Gold Jennings solicitors, who represented the Sudanese man, said: “The Home Office operated an unpublished policy which resulted in vulnerable asylum seekers being denied humane and lawful care.
“It prevented victims from obtaining timely and lawful leave, leaving many to endure (and continue to endure) the misery and instability of limbo, as well as further obstacles to accessing the help they needed to recover. The secrecy surrounding the policy prevented it from being challenged in court earlier.”
A Home Office spokesman said: “Human trafficking is a barbaric crime and we are determined to eradicate it. We cannot comment on individual cases, but it remains the case that victims of trafficking are referred to the national referral mechanism to ensure they receive the support they need to rebuild their lives.”