Exploited Into Essex Conference
“Exploitation will not be tolerated in Essex.”
The overriding message to come from the Exploited into Essex conference.
Hosted by the PFCC and Essex Police, the conference shone a light on modern-day slavery, human trafficking and organised immigration crime.
Held at the London Cruise Terminal at Tilbury, the event highlighted the work already being done, the challenge the county faces and what can be done together to build resilience against these forms of crime and stop exploitation in Essex.
Opening the conference – which came following the discovery of the bodies of 39 Vietnamese men and women found in a container lorry in Grays in October 2019 – Jane Gardner, Deputy Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex, said: “This is an incredibly important topic.
“What makes this venue pertinent is that not far up the road, 39 people tragically lost their lives. It is why we are all here today; to stop these horrific crimes from claiming more lives and bringing misery to men, women and children around the world.
“That is why today is so important. We have the opportunity to make a difference.”
Essex Police Chief Constable BJ Harrington said: “This is not an immigration issue. These are crimes that cost innocent people their lives, destroy families and leave people trapped mercilessly at the hands of gangs. This is a people issue.
“These crimes shock the world. The perpetrators have a total and absolute disregard for human life. They value cash over the safety of the people who genuinely trusted them to take them to another place in the world.
“But, this is not just about people in the backs of lorries. This is happening in our communities. We are determined to tackle it.
“Exploitation will not be tolerated in Essex.”
Justine Carter, director of Unseen, lead the development of the Modern Slavery & Exploitation Helpline.
She told how the helpline receives calls from across the UK and abroad from potential victims, members of the public, agencies and businesses wanting advice.
The conference also heard how Schmitz Cargobull, a manufacturer of semi-trailers, trailers and truck bodies for temperature controlled freight, general cargo and bulk goods, is working with Fujitsi to provide digital tracking technology to give peace of mind across the supply chain.
Roger Hirst, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex, said: “This is an issue that colleagues across the country regard as niche. We do not regard it as that in Essex at all. It is a key issue here in Essex. We have been looking at it and dealing with it for quite a few years.
“October 2019 was a really traumatic, sobering, sad event that kicked us into doing more. Thirty-nine people died in our county in one event. Unthinkable, really. It dwarfed most other crimes in our county.
“We have some tremendous work being done to take down the evil criminals and perpetrators of the act. It is really important we bring these people to justice. It is really important that we prevent it from happening again.
“It is our responsibility, individually and collectively, to make this happen. We need to be training people to spot the signs of exploitation. We need to support each other, emergency services and businesses, to implement the measures we have been hearing about today.
“Every business and organisation has an individual and collective responsibility and role to tackle exploitation.
“We are not starting here, but certainly stepping it up from here.”
