UCL Laws academic gives evidence to inform Draft Modern Slavery Bill

The government is working on a new bill to find ways to deal effectively with slavery. Dr Virginia Mantouvalou, Reader in Human Rights and Labour Law at UCL Laws and co-director of the UCL Institute for Human Rights, gave evidence to the Parliamentary Joint Committee to inform the Draft Modern Slavery Bill in January.

Dr Mantouvalou said: “The Bill provides some basic safeguards against the worst forms of labour exploitation, however, it does not address adequately the great vulnerability of domestic workers, which stems from their exclusion from much of the labour protective legislation.

“The Overseas Domestic Worker visa regime, that has been in force since 2012, may lead to situations of ‘modern slavery’ in violation of the European Convention on Human Rights, and needs revision before this Bill moves forward.”

Listen to Dr Mantouvalou’s evidence on Parliament TV (30 minutes)