With this it will be convenient to discuss the following:
New clause 16—Accommodation operated by gangmasters—
‘(1) The Secretary of State shall within one year of this Act being passed bring forward regulations to require gangmasters providing, or soliciting a third party to provide, accommodation to a worker to—
(a) agree and keep of a copy of a tenancy agreement with the worker;
(b) provide and keep copies of receipts for any rent paid by the worker to them; and
(c) keep a rent book recording rent due and paid.
(2) In section 7 of the Gangmaster (Licensing) Act 2004 after subsection (5) insert—
“(6) It shall be a condition of holding a license under this section that the gangmaster provide on request to the Authority or a local authority the documents required under regulations made under section (Accommodation operated by Gangmasters) of the Modern Slavery Act 2014.”
(3) The Authority and police shall have the right of inspection of tenancy agreements held by letting agencies where there are reasonable grounds to suspect a number of properties are let or sub-let by the same individual to multiple workers.”
New clause 17—Gangmasters: offences, financial transactions—
In the Gangmaster Licensing Act 2004 after section 13 (Offences: payments to or by gangmasters) insert—
“13A Offences: gangmasters, financial transactions
(1) This section applies to a person who is acting as a gangmaster in respect of a worker (“W”).
(2) The person commits an offence if whilst acting as set out in subsection (1) they make a payment to W that is not made either—
(a) by a cheque which under section 81A of the Bills of Exchange Act 1882 is not transferable, or
(b) by an electronic transfer of funds (authorised by credit or debit card or otherwise), or
(3) The person commits an offence if—
(a) whilst making a payment to W in respect of work they do not keep a record of the payment and the hours worked for which the payment is due, or
(b) if they do not produce such a record when required to by either the Gangmasters Licensing Authority or the police.
(4) The Secretary of State may by regulations amend subsection (2) to permit other methods of payment.
(5) In this section making a payment includes payment in kind (with goods or services).
(6) If a gangmaster pays a worker in breach of subsection (2), each of the following is guilty of an offence—
(a) the gangmaster;
(b) if the payment is made with the knowledge of the person to whom the gangmaster is supplying W, that person; and
(c) any person who makes the payment acting for the gangmaster.
(7) It is a defence for a person within subsection (4)(a) or (b) who is charged with an offence under this section to prove that the person—
(a) made arrangements to ensure that the payment was not made in breach of subsection (1), and
(b) took all reasonable steps to ensure that those arrangements were complied with.
(8) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.”
New clause 18—Provision of fixed penalty notices for gangmasters—
‘(1) The Gangmasters (Licensing) Act 2004 is amended as follows.
(2) In section 12 (Offences: acting as a gangmaster, being in possession of false documents etc.) after subsection (4) insert—
“(4A) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision for fixed monetary penalties to be applied for an offence under this Act where—
(a) the offence is of a lower level of severity, and
(b) slavery, servitude and forced or compulsory labour is not a contributory factor in the offence.
(4B) Regulations made under subsection (4A) shall be made by statutory instrument and may not be made unless laid before in draft and agreed by both Houses of Parliament.””
New clause 19—Investigation of modern slavery offences by Gangmasters Licensing Authority—
‘(1) In section 1 (The Gangmasters Licensing Authority) after “holding licences under this Act,” insert—
“(c) investigate offences under section 1 of the Modern Slavery Act 2014, and related offences of fraud, where those offences involve gangmasters,
(d) investigate offences under section 1 of the Modern Slavery Act 2014, and related offences of fraud, where those offences are alleged to have been committed by a person licensed under this Act, whether or not the offence was committed in their capacity as a gangmaster,”
(2) The Secretary of State may by regulations confer powers on the Gangmasters Licensing Authority in order to investigate offences under this Act.
(3) Regulations under subsection (2) shall include provision to require financial institutions to disclose details of financial holdings to the Gangmasters Licensing Authority or the police in pursuit of an investigation of an offence under this Act.
(4) Regulations under this section shall be made by statutory instrument and may not be made unless they have been laid before in draft, and approved by, both Houses of Parliament.”
New clause 2—Protection from slavery from overseas domestic workers—
‘(1) All overseas and domestic workers, including those working for staff of diplomatic missions, shall be entitled to—
(a) change their employer (but not work sector) while in the United Kingdom;
(b) renew their domestic worker or diplomatic domestic worker visa for a period up to 12 months as long as they remain in employment and are able to support themselves adequately without recourse to public funds; and
(c) a three month temporary visa permitting them to live in the United Kingdom for the purposes of seeking alternative employment as an overseas domestic worker where there is evidence that the worker has been a victim of modern slavery.”
New clause 6—Procuring sex for payment—
‘(1) A person commits an offence under this section if he or she procures sexual intercourse or any other sexual act, whether for himself or for another person, in return for payment.
(2) A “payment” includes—
(a) payment that is promised or is given or promised by another person; and
(b) provision of non-financial benefits, including, but not limited to, drugs or alcohol.”
New clause 7—Strategy on assistance and support for exiting prostitution—
The Secretary of State shall, at least once in every year, publish a strategy to ensure that a programmes of assistance and support is made available to a person who wishes to leave prostitution.”
New clause 22—Prostitution and sexual exploitation—
‘(1) The Secretary of State must undertake a review of the links between prostitution and human trafficking and sexual exploitation in England and Wales.
(2) The review under subsection (1) must consider—
(a) the extent to which the current legislation governing prostitution in England and Wales acts as an effective deterrent to demand for sexual services from exploited persons;
(b) the extent to which the current legislation governing prostitution in England and Wales enables effective enforcement action against those trafficking people for sexual exploitation; and
(c) the extent to which alternative legal frameworks for governing prostitution adopted by other countries within the European Union, including Northern Ireland, have been effective at reducing sexual exploitation and the number of people trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation.
(3) The review under subsection (1) must be completed and a copy must be laid before Parliament within six months of Royal Assent.”
New clause 23—Consultation on prostitution, sexual exploitation and trafficking—
‘(1) The Secretary of State must initiate a statutory consultation on the introduction of legislation prohibiting the procurement of sex for payment.
(2) The consultation in subsection (1) must seek to ascertain the degree to which the prohibition of sex for payment would—
(a) reduce the number of people sexually exploited in England and Wales;
(b) reduce demand for sexual services from sexually exploited persons in England and Wales;
(c) reduce the number of people trafficked into England and Wales for the purposes of sexual exploitation.
(3) In undertaking the consultation in subsection (1) the Secretary of State must—
(a) seek the views of those who work with trafficked and exploited persons in England and Wales;
(b) seek the views of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Association of Chief Police Officers; and
(c) allow submissions from members of the public.
(4) The consultation must be completed and a summary of the results laid before Parliament within six months of the date of Royal Assent.”
Amendment 1, page 45, line 21, at end insert—
“Street Offences Act 1959
‘(10) Omit section 1”