Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to help tackle reported slave auctions in detention camps in Libya.

The UK is determined to eliminate the scourge of forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking. The Government works closely with the Libyan Government and takes all allegations of abuse seriously. During his visit to Libya in August the Foreign Secretary raised with Prime Minister Serraj the importance of offering humanitarian support to migrants and the need to respect human rights. I also raised our concerns about the human rights situation in Libya, including the issue of slavery, with the Libyan Deputy Prime Minister on 1 December and welcomed the investigation into this issue. The matter was raised in Parliament in a debate on 18 December in Westminster Hall, which I answered, setting out the UK position. Our Ambassador has further underlined our concerns about these reports in our recent discussions with the Libyan Government, and will continue to monitor the situation closely.