Agenda item

Modern Slavery

To receive a presentation from Superintendent Rai of Thames Valley Police on combatting Modern Slavery within the Royal Borough.

 

Minutes:

Superintendent Bhupinder Rai introduced the item and reminded Members that she had given a presentation on trafficking and slavery to the Panel a year ago. She explained that her latest presentation included a case study example of an operation that had been carried out within the Royal Borough. Supt Rai explained that modern slavery can take many forms, including human trafficking, forced labour, domestic servitude and sexual and criminal exploitation. Victims could become enslaved due to blackmail, debt bondage and cultural and belief differences, in addition to not being allowed to leave a property.

 

Supt Rai informed the Panel that since November 1 it had been a legal obligation for all public authorities – which included the police and councils – to inform the Home Office when they had encountered a potential victim of modern slavery. It was Thames Valley Police policy to inform partner agencies when a referral had been made. Supt Rai informed the Panel that great steps had been taken in combatting modern slavery over the last year, and that problem solving was now seen as the policing golden thread as crime investigations had become more complicated over time.

 

Supt Rai explained one of the major issues affecting the Thames Valley Police area was that of ‘county lines’, where organised crime gangs would set up their criminal businesses in places where they were not known and where organised gangs did not previously exist. Many of these gangs came from the London area. Supt Rai explained that the county lines gangs were usually large scale drug dealers, and once they had set up their businesses associated crimes such as theft and burglary would usually follow. She explained that the county lines gangs would then look to exploit people during the running of their businesses, such as using children to carry drugs as they were less likely to be stopped by the police.

 

Supt Rai stated that drug gangs had not traditionally been a major problem in the Thames Valley, and new ways to combat drug problems had been needed. She explained, for example, that while a traditional Section 23 search warrant of a property would often lead to an arrest of an individual, it did little to combat the organised crime element associated with drugs. Supt Rai explained that Partial Closure Orders, which prevented anybody other than the occupier from entering the property, were being used to great effect. She explained county lines gangs would often take over a property as part of a drug operation, and use of Partial Closure Orders had led to the arrests of many gang members for being in breach of the Order. A Full Closure Order would not be sought unless the occupier was criminally involved, as the properties involved usually belonged to local authorities and/or housing associations and closing them for would place an additional burden on the demand for such housing. Supt Rai stated that HMIC had said Thames Valley Police used Closure Orders to great effect. Over the past year nine Partial Closure Orders and one Full Closure Order had been implemented.

 

In terms of partnerships, police had established links with the DAAT team at the Council and the Rehab charity. Victims would also be referred to the National Referral Mechanism; however Supt Rai explained that this would only be successful if the victim chose to engage. She also stated that the NRM did not apply to child victims, who would be referred instead to their local authority. In the past year three victims had been referred to the NRM and three organised crime gangs had been disrupted. Supt Rai stated that the Royal Borough was the only policing borough in the Thames Valley Police area that had seen a reduction in burglary, which she attributed to the work that had gone in to tackling organised crime gangs. Supt Rai stated that Councillors and members of the press had been invited to attend the servings of warrants in order to raise publicity and help residents to understand what was happening in terms of policing in the Royal Borough.

 

The Chairman asked if there were particular signs members of the public should look for if they were suspicious that somebody was the victim of modern slavery, or anything that would alert police to the possibility it was occurring. Supt Rai said unusual crime patterns – such as an increase in offences of violence – would be something that police officers would notice. She said that anything out of the ordinary, such as a sudden unexplained increase in the number of people visiting a certain property, should be reported to the police. The Chairman asked if there was a national hotline that instances of modern slavery could be reported to. Supt Rai said there was not, but that suspicions could be reported to Crimestoppers.

 

Responding to a question from Cllr Werner, Supt Rai stated that it was a difficult balancing act dealing with low level drug users who had possibly been exploited while investigating an organised gang, as they had committed criminal offences in using and/or possessing drugs whilst being victims of the gangs. Supt Rai said that disrupting the organised gangs was the police’s priority.

 

Parish Cllr MacDonald asked if there were any examples of modern slavery and exploitation through cults and/or travellers. Supt Rai said there were no examples of this within the Royal Borough, but there had been in parts of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire. She added that modern slavery was not restricted to certain groups.

 

The Vice Chairman asked if there were any examples of how police would engage with different local communities. Supt Rai stated that one to one engagement with residents was seen as the most effective way of ensuring engagements with communities.

 

The Chairman and the Panel Members thanked Supt Rai for her presentation, which the Panel had found very helpful and informative on the issue of modern slavery in our Borough.