Record numbers nailed for slavery but there’s so much more to do, warns director of public prosecutions

A record number of people were prosecuted for slavery offences in Britain last year, the head of the Crown Prosecution Service reveals today.

Alison Saunders, the Director of Public Prosecutions, said 349 people had been prosecuted in 2016, but admitted this was only the “tip of the iceberg” with thousands of people now living in servitude. Writing in the Standard, she highlights the importance of UK and EU co-operation in tackling slave trafficking gangs.

She says investigations had become more complex, often spanning several countries and now typically involving three times more victims and witnesses than in 2011.

Ms Saunders says: “Our participation in joint investigation teams with police and prosecutors from EU countries ... is a highly effective way to tackle organised criminal networks.”

She says the CPS is involved in 20 joint investigations with EU countries into trafficking. One saw eight defendants arrested in the UK while three were held in Hungary. They were jailed.

Ms Saunders says: “Central to this successful prosecution was our work with the Hungarian authorities following the setting up of a joint team.