Thank you, Madam President.
The United Kingdom would like to express its strong support for the ongoing work of the Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons, and we welcome further discussion on this important issue.
We are grateful for the Special Rapporteur's latest report, and we support its central assertion that effective implementation of the non-punishment principle is critical to protecting the human rights of trafficked victims, their access to remedies and the justice they deserve.
The UK has established non-punishment provisions and policies that can be applied to those identified as victims of trafficking. We recognise that trafficked victims need appropriate support, and the UK's National Referral Mechanism is the framework through which we provide this. Internationally, we also continue to encourage States who have not yet done so to ratify and implement the 2014 ILO Protocol to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930, which requires governments to take measures to tackle all forms of forced labour and provide protection to victims.
Madam Special Rapporteur,
What can be done to encourage more States to put in place an effective framework of legislation and measures in order to effectively exercise their obligations under the non-punishment principle?
Thank you.
