by Lloyd's List

28 October 2024 (Lloyd's List) - THE British Ports Association has launched new guidance for ports and terminals in the fight against modern slavery and smuggling.

A new report penned by the association was launched at the UK’s House of Commons last week. Maritime minister Mike Kane attended the launch and welcomed efforts by the industry to combat smuggling.

Modern slavery affects 1 in 150 people worldwide, the World Economic Forum estimates. The UK government, using referral mechanism data, calculates the number of victims in the UK as 17,000, but the Centre for Social Justice thinks it could be as many as 100,000.

DP World’s senior director of security in Europe, Lisa Lewis, wrote the report. She is also risk and sustainability director for Cattewater Harbour Commission in Plymouth.

Lewis explained that the guide is centred around five core recommendations: a zero-tolerance policy; training for staff to better spot incidents; collecting, evaluating and sharing data; seeking out collaborators in the value chain and disclosing activity with a modern slavery statement.

She said the guidance “is scalable so that ports of any size and capacity should be able to use it to improve their posture against the evils of modern slavery and people trafficking as well as smuggling and threats posed by organised crime”.

“The goal is better planning, enhanced collaboration and putting in place a culture of empowerment that gives port workers the confidence to challenge things that don’t look right.”

BPA Chair Mike Sellers said he was “delighted to launch this guidance and immensely grateful to Lisa Lewis and others that have given up their time to produce this guide”.

“I have no doubt it will eventually save lives as our industry plays its part in tackling the scourge of modern slavery and people trafficking.”

The report contains case studies to demonstrate what modern slavery and smuggling operations can look like and highlights good practice for ports in dealing with them.

One example offered took place in Grimsby, where an innocuous-looking trawler turned out to be accommodation for human trafficking. The port was contacted by police in Devon querying the ownership of the vessel, which led to its eventual uncovering.

The report described the case as “startling” and said it led to Grimsby adopting new ways of working to uncover similar cases in the future.

Associated British Ports’ head of security Andy Billings said co-operation was key to reducing weak points in the supply chain.

“Industry networks allow what is a highly competitive sector to come together and collaborate in areas that need a united front to stop criminals exploiting weak links and blind spots,” he said.

“There is always a benefit for us in learning from experiences elsewhere as we seek to work together to reduce crime and make our ports safer.”