ICIBI report raises concerns over quality of Home Office’s modern slavery decisions

A new report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration (ICIBI) was published last week examining the Home Office's Immigration Enforcement Competent Authority (IECA).

You can download the detailed 107-page report here.

The IECA was established in November 2021 to streamline decisions on modern slavery referrals involving foreign nationals who may face removal from the UK. It decides whether somebody should be recognised as a victim of modern slavery and receive support and protections set out in the Modern Slavery Act 2015.

In its inspection report, the ICIBI assesses the IECA's handling of modern slavery and human trafficking claims, focusing on the timeliness and quality of its decisions, as well as its preparedness for legislative changes such as the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 and the Illegal Migration Act 2023.

Some significant challenges were identified in the IECA's decision-making quality, safeguarding measures, and workforce management. In particular, the Independent Chief Inspector, David Bolt, said the inspection found that the IECA has placed speed above rigorous attention to detail.

Bolt said: "If there is one message to take away from here, it is that doing something quickly or doing it correctly is a false choice."

2023 saw significant changes for the IECA, including substantial workforce growth and the introduction of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022, which raised the burden of proof for individuals seeking recognition as victims of modern slavery.

The growth in the IECA's workforce in 2023 created problems, with the inspection finding that poor sequencing of recruitment led to delays in onboarding technical specialists and key management roles, resulting in inconsistent support for inexperienced decision-makers and gaps in governance, including missing risk registers and standard operating procedures.

There was a sharp rise in the percentage of negative decisions made by the IECA after the Nationality and Borders Act came into force in 2023. Second stage Conclusive Grounds (CG) decisions went from 82% positive in 2022 to 70% negative in 2023. Negative first stage Reasonable Grounds decisions were also much higher as a result of the Act.

Stakeholders told the ICIBI that the Conservative government's prioritisation of removing Albanian nationals from the UK meant IECA decision makers (DMs) were making very quick, but not necessarily high quality, decisions.

The report states: "There was no evidence that the IECA had explored in any depth the effect on decision quality and outcomes of the very clearly stated ministerial priority to remove irregular migrants, especially Albanian nationals, from the UK quickly, or of the fact that the performance figures for priority cohorts (Albanians, asylum legacy [work in progress], and Foreign National Offender Returns Command Taskforce cases) were reported monthly to senior managers and internal stakeholders. Difficulties with evidence gathering contributed to the problem of insufficient information to make a positive CG decision. DMs did not automatically have access to potentially relevant information, such as an individual's detention or prison healthcare records, despite the stated purpose of the IECA being to streamline decisions by having 'ready access to the majority of pertinent information'. DMs were likely to make negative CG decisions where there was insufficient evidence, rather than be proactive in requesting specific information that could inform the decision, which they saw as the responsibility of the case preparation team."

The inspection found issues with training, advice, and guidance for IECA decision makers, and with the quality assurance regime. David Bolt added that the IECA's response to safeguarding issues was both under-developed in its thinking and under-resourced.

The report also briefly highlights problems caused by a lack of legal aid, noting: "Stakeholders told inspectors that the quality of referral was improved where a potential victim had access to legal advice. However, they said that there was a shortage of legal representatives because the legal aid system was 'on its knees'. They considered that potential victims without effective legal advice were at a disadvantage as they may not know about the NRM and would be unaware of what information or evidence they would need to support their claim."

Seven recommendations were made by the ICIBI in the report, all of which the Home Office accepted either fully or in large part. The Home Office's official response to the inspection is available here. Some of the positives in the ICIBI's report were highlighted, with the Home Office saying; "The Department is pleased to see an acknowledgement of its success in the short time since its creation, with particular reference to the positive working environment that has been created despite significant growth, the clearance of its backlog and subsequent transfer of referrals from the Single Competent Authority. The recommendations, on the whole, reflect the direction that the IECA has been working towards and will support the drive to bring improvements to the Department and wider National Referral Mechanism."