Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer on 3 December 2018 to Question 196808 on Human Trafficking: Victim Support Schemes, if he will conduct a public consultation on the adequacy of guidance to be issued under Section 49 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015.

The Government recognises the importance of publishing guidance under Section 49 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 on the identification of and sup-port for potential victims of modern slavery.

There is no duty to consult on the s49 statutory guidance, and as such, there are no plans for a public consultation at this time. However, the Home Office began working closely with stakeholders across the sector to draft guidance shortly after commencement of the Act. This work was paused to accommo-date changes to identification and support as part of the reforms to the Na-tional Referral Mechanism. Work on the guidance has resumed and we will publish it as soon as we are able.