The Present Politicalisation of Immigration in the UK—A Barrier to Identifying More Trafficked Victims

The issue of immigration has become heavily politicised in recent decades, creating challenges for a host of foreign nationals being recognised and having their rights observed by the UK. Understanding present attitudes to immigration in the UK and the reason behind some hostility is crucial to acknowledging how policies have been created to deal with this issue which has led to undesirable consequences for trafficked victims, especially during the present narrative from some who say people may be ‘gaming the system,’ using modern slavery protections but are not genuine victims. The timeframe of 2020–2023 was a significant time for immigration and migration in the UK. The small boats crisis which continues to grab attention and facilitate increased hostility towards asylum seekers and refugees can be traced back to this period along with the legislative attempts to combat this phenomenon. The obligations of the State to protect their borders simultaneously with recognising the rights of those seeking refugee status continues to not be an easy balance to achieve. Trafficked victims are often intertwined within this migrant group which justifies more a focussed approach to identify more individuals through the National Referral Mechanism (NRM).