How effectively do the UK and relevant international anti-slavery legal frameworks operate?

Abstract

This thesis explores the effectiveness of the anti-slavery framework of the UK, asking how it implements the international norms around slavery in such a way as to give them full effect. It considers this idea in light of several aspects of the concepts concerning slavery while also evaluating some of the key theories relating to the implementation of international law in a national context. In order to do this the thesis starts by evaluating the international norms that have been implemented in the UK in order to understand what the norms around slavery are at this level while also examining how these various treaties have been implemented in the UK. This includes treaties from the UN as well as the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms 1950. This is followed by an analysis of national law, in particular the Modern Slavery Act 2015. In order to measure both effective implementation of norms and the actual operation of the Act in regards to slavery, consideration is first given to some of the smaller elements of the Act in one chapter such as the new control orders and methods of victim care that are relevant to the framework as a whole rather than as a single part. This is followed by three individual chapters on the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner, criminal responses and supply chain slavery. Due to these being relevant to issues inherent in the existing UK legal framework or emerging forms of exploitation, it is worth considering how the UK has made an attempt to actually resolve these issues as well as how they reflect on the norms of slavery upheld at the international level. This thesis concludes that while good efforts have been made, the framework lacks effectiveness in several critical areas. There is a significant amount of relative "distance" between the norms in the international context and their actualisation in the national context that has not been overcome, or is being damaged by actions in said national context.

Date of Award	1 Aug 2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The University of Manchester
Supervisor	Elaine Dewhurst (Supervisor) & Ruth Lamont (Supervisor)