UN Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review - fourth cycle recommendations: Scottish Government response

12. Human Trafficking and Exploitation

A) Human Trafficking and Exploitation

Recommendation(s) and Responses

Relevant section(s) of the October 2022 UPR Position Statement

• 12(A) – Tackling Human Trafficking
• 12(B) – Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic
• 12(C) - Implementing V.C.L & A.N v the United Kingdom
• 12(D) – Child Victims of Trafficking
• 12(E) – Child Exploitation
• 12(F) – Online Safety

Recent Progress and Next Steps

The Scottish Government launched a new statutory service called Guardianship Scotland on 1 April 2023.

We expect Guardianship Scotland to support all unaccompanied asylum seeking and trafficked children across Scotland. As part of the new statutory service there is now a duty on local authorities to refer eligible young people to Guardianship Scotland as soon as reasonably practicable.

Following an open and fair procurement process, Scottish Government awarded the contract to run the new service to a consortium between Aberlour and the Scottish Refugee Council.

Both organisations have been delivering guardianship support to separated children in Scotland since 2010 on a non-statutory basis. This contract will run for an initial 3 years and receive funding of just under £1 million annually.

The Scottish Government has conducted a statutory review of its 2017 Trafficking and Exploitation Strategy^[238] and published the review findings^[239] in September 2023. The review includes a commitment to develop a refreshed strategy in collaboration with partners, including those with lived experience of trafficking and exploitation.

The Scottish Government continues to fund support to victims under Sections 9 & 10 of the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015^[240] (“2015 Act”) which requires Scottish Ministers to secure support and assistance for adult victims of human trafficking where there are reasonable grounds (as determined through the National Referral Mechanism to believe an adult is a victim of human trafficking and/or slavery, servitude and forced or compulsory labour.

This support is discharged through grant funding arrangements with the Trafficking Awareness Raising Alliance and Migrant Help, who will share over £7.45 million from the Victim Centred Approach Fund between 1 April 2022 and 31 March 2025.

This support will be impacted by the UK Illegal Migration Act which removes some duties and powers on Scottish Ministers to provide funding.

Tackling Human Trafficking

The Scottish Government intends to publish the fifth annual report detailing progress in implementing the Trafficking and Exploitation Strategy in the second half of 2023. We also intend to publish our first Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement in 2023 which outlines the Government’s attempts to tackle slavery and exploitation within its own processes, systems and supply chains.

Section 38 of the 2015 Act places a duty on specified Scottish public authorities to provide information to Police Scotland about people who are, or appear to be, victims of human trafficking or of slavery, servitude and forced or compulsory labour – this is termed the Duty to Notify.

The original policy intent underpinning section 38 of the Act was to allow for the collation and processing of wider information about trafficking activity in Scotland not currently collected through the NRM or the criminal justice system. It was envisioned that this would provide a more accurate picture of the scale and extent of trafficking in Scotland, and enable more effective targeting of enforcement activity and provision of support services.

Current work involves working with the Home Office to identify how referrals would be made – via the NRM or a bespoke system - and continuing discussions with public body stakeholders on the implementation and impact of the proposed duty.

Child Exploitation

Child Criminal Exploitation is abuse. The updated National Guidance for Child Protection^[241] in Scotland is clear that Child Criminal Exploitation is a cause of significant harm and that a child protection response is required. The National Guidance provides practitioners with information on Child Criminal Exploitation, and the child protection processes that should be followed when there is reason to believe that a child has been, or is at risk of being criminally exploited.

The Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Hub on the Scottish Government’s Parent Club website^[242] provides information on child sexual abuse and child sexual exploitation for parents and carers, including spotting the signs of abuse, talking to children about sexual abuse and sexual exploitation, reporting concerns and how to access help and support.

The Scottish Government is working with partners to understand the nature, scale and extent of Child Criminal Exploitation, and to take action to ensure that children who are at risk of, or are victims of criminal exploitation, are identified and supported. The Children and Young People’s Centre for Justice published a scoping review of Child Criminal Exploitation in May 2023^[243]. This research was part-funded by the Scottish Government and will inform the next stages of our work on this challenging issue.

In July 2023, Scottish Government published Practitioner Guidance on Criminal Exploitation^[244] on behalf of the Scottish Serious Organised Crime Taskforce. The guidance aims to support a shared understanding of criminal exploitation of children (up to 18) and adults, and to help professionals identify those at risk from criminal exploitation. The Guidance also applies to criminal exploitation which is not linked to serious organised crime.

Online Safety

Protecting children online is a key priority for the Scottish Government. This includes both child sexual abuse and sexual exploitation, and our approach to tackling these harms in Scotland reflects the interlinked nature of these issues.

We published the National Guidance for child protection in Scotland in September 2021.^[245] his provides updated information on child sexual abuse and child sexual exploitation to support local areas in Scotland in developing effective, evidence-based responses. It also provides detailed advice for all practitioners who support victims of exploitation. In August 2023, we published the updated 2021 National Guidance for Child Protection in Scotland^[246] This includes significant legislative, policy and practice changes since publication in 2021, and incorporates learning from this period of National Guidance implementation.

We continue to work with our partners through the Police Scotland Multi-Agency Preventing Online Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Group to inform our approach to enforcement to keep children safe online.

The Online Safety Hub on the Scottish Government’s Parent Club website^[247] provides advice for parents and carers on how to support children who have had a negative experience online, including signposting to websites offering support as well as advice on how to report inappropriate content online.

We ran a national public awareness campaign in February and March 2022, and again in 2023, to support parents and carers to help keep their children safer online. This linked to the Scottish Government’s Parent Club website and newly created Online Safety and Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Hubs.

Evaluation of the campaign showed that it had a positive effect. A survey conducted on the campaign showed that it had a strong impact upon behaviour, with nine in ten recognisers of the campaign reporting taking action as a result of it, far exceeding the target set and the highest rate of any Parent Club campaign.

The UK Government’s Online Safety Bill seeks to establish a new regulatory regime aimed at ensuring that platforms in scope have systems and processes in place to deal with illegal and harmful content and their associated risk, particularly to children and young people. It will empower Ofcom to better regulate internet services and search engines, and to make the internet a safer place for users.

While internet safety is a reserved matter, we continue to engage with the UK Government and Ofcom to press for stronger protections to help keep children in Scotland safe online.

Relevant National Outcomes

• We live in communities that are inclusive, empowered, resilient and safe.
• We have thriving and innovative businesses, with quality jobs and fair work for everyone.
• We respect, protect and fulfil human rights and live free from discrimination.
• We are open, connected and make a positive contribution internationally.
• We grow up loved, safe and respected so that we realise our full potential.

Relevant Sustainable Development Goals

• 8 - Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all
• 16 - Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.