PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
(18 November 2024)

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the disbanding of Multi-Agency Assurance Panels on independent assurance of National Referral Mechanism decisions in the review of negative Conclusive Grounds decisions by the Single Competent Authority and Immigration Enforcement Competent Authority to identify victims of modern slavery; and if she will make it her policy to reinstate a MAAP assurance process that (a) tests consistency of decision-making and (b) protects the individual concerned.

Asked by:
Ellie Chowns (Green Party)

The number of referrals into the National Referral Mechanism has continued to grow year on year (17,004 individuals were referred into the NRM in 2023), and the pressure on the timeliness of decision-making in the NRM has only continued to increase.

The previous government concluded that the design of the Multi-Agency Assurance Panels (MAAPs) process contributed to the number of days being added to the decision-making timelines for those exiting the NRM as non-victims, and therefore, to help provide greater certainty sooner to that cohort of individuals, MAAPs were removed in December 2022.

To further improve the timeliness of decision-making in the NRM, this Government has made arrangements for an additional 200 Home Office decision makers to be recruited in order to eradicate the backlog of decisions on modern slavery cases within 2 years.

Regarding assurances of decision making, both competent authorities employ a Quality Strategy intended to support the vision of delivering quality outcomes for victims of modern slavery by regularly reporting quality assurance outcomes to decision making teams.

All negative decisions taken by Competent Authorities are reviewed by a second caseworker or manager in line with statutory obligations. This includes negative Reasonable Grounds decisions, negative Conclusive Grounds decisions, and Public Order Disqualification and Bad Faith disqualification decisions. The quality assurance of decisions made also includes random sampling of positive decisions.

The Home Office continues to keep the assurance of decision making in the competent authorities under review, including whether independent assurance would be beneficial to decision making outcomes.

Answered by:
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1 January 1970