Human Trafficking

Mr. Steen
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions she has had with the airline industry on responsibility for the cost of returning to their country of origin persons trafficked by air into the UK.

Mr. Woolas
[holding answer 14 May 2009]: There are no specific arrangements for assigning responsibility of the costs of returning trafficking victims to their country of origin. I am not aware that this has been raised as an issue by the airline industry. It is our policy to encourage voluntary returns wherever possible, which in most cases would not result in a cost being incurred by a carrier.