The Trafficking People for Exploitation (Amendment) Regulations 2026
These 2026 Regulations, made under the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023, amend two pieces of 2013 legislation concerning the trafficking of people for exploitation by removing specific requirements for statutory reviews of those regulations, thereby streamlining the legal framework without replacement.
Arguments For
Removing mandatory review clauses streamlines legislation, reducing administrative burdens associated with periodic statutory reviews.
The revocation powers under the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 permit the removal of retained EU law provisions, such as mandatory review schedules, when they are deemed unnecessary or obsolete under current policy settings.
Simplifying these regulations aligns with a broader governmental objective to reform and potentially simplify the body of retained EU law.
Arguments Against
Removing scheduled reviews eliminates a planned mechanism for assessing the effectiveness, impact, and relevance of the original 2013 anti-trafficking measures.
This action might remove accountability mechanisms that ensure regulations remain fit for purpose as societal understanding and methods of exploitation evolve.
The removal of a provision concerning cross-border arrangements between England, Wales, and the EU could complicate future regulatory considerations related to international cooperation on trafficking.
STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS
2026 No. 295
RETAINED EU LAW REFORM
The Trafficking People for Exploitation (Amendment) Regulations 2026
Sift requirements satisfied
10th March 2026
Made - - - -
12th March 2026
Laid before Parliament
16th March 2026
Coming into force -
6th April 2026
This introduces the instrument as a negative statutory instrument, dated 2026, number 295, falling under the category of Retained EU Law Reform.
It specifies the dates of making (March 12, 2026), laying before Parliament (March 16, 2026), and the date it legally comes into force (April 6, 2026), while noting that sift requirements have been satisfied.
The Secretary of State makes these Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by section 14(1) of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 ('the 2023 Act')( 1 ).
The Secretary of State is a relevant national authority for the purposes of section 14(1) of the 2023 Act( 2 ).
The requirements of paragraph 6(2) of Schedule 5 to the 2023 Act (relating to the appropriate Parliamentary procedure for these Regulations) have been satisfied.
The Secretary of State is enacting these rules using powers granted by Section 14(1) of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023.
The Secretary of State is confirmed as the appropriate body to use these powers.
Importantly, the necessary procedural steps stipulated by Parliamentary requirements under Schedule 5 of the 2023 Act have been completed.
Citation, commencement and extent
- -(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Trafficking People for Exploitation (Amendment) Regulations 2026.
- (2) These Regulations come into force 21 days after the day on which they are laid.
- (3) These Regulations extend to England and Wales.
The first operational section establishes the official title as the Trafficking People for Exploitation (Amendment) Regulations 2026.
These rules become legally active 21 days after they are officially presented to Parliament.
The geographical scope of these amendments is limited to England and Wales.
Amendment of the Trafficking People for Exploitation Regulations 2013
- In the Trafficking People for Exploitation Regulations 2013( 3 ), omit regulation 6 (review).
This directly amends the 2013 Regulations dealing with trafficking people for exploitation.
Specifically, it removes Regulation 6, which mandated a scheduled review of those regulations.
Amendment of the Electronic Commerce Directive (Trafficking People for Exploitation) Regulations 2013
- In the Electronic Commerce Directive (Trafficking People for Exploitation) Regulations 2013( 4 ), omit the following provisions- 2. (a) regulation 4 (internal market: non-UK service providers); 3. (b) regulation 8 (review).
This section modifies the associated 2013 Regulations concerning the Electronic Commerce Directive as it relates to trafficking.
It strikes out two specific provisions: Regulation 4, which dealt with service providers operating from outside the UK into the internal market, and Regulation 8, which required a review of these regulations.
12th March 2026
Jess Phillips Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
Home Office
This section concludes the instrument by providing the signature details, indicating that Jess Phillips, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Office, signed the instrument on March 12, 2026.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations are made in exercise of the power in section 14(1) of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023. This is the power to revoke secondary assimilated EU law without replacing it.
Regulations 2 and 3 amend, respectively, the Trafficking People for Exploitation Regulations 2013 (S.I. 2013/554) and the Electronic Commerce Directive (Trafficking People for Exploitation) Regulations 2013 (S.I. 2013/817) to remove requirements to carry out reviews of those Regulations.
Regulation 3 further amends S.I. 2013/817 to remove a provision about cross-border arrangements between England and Wales and the European Union which is no longer desirable.
A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen.
The explanatory note clarifies that the instrument uses powers under the 2023 Act specifically to revoke retained EU secondary legislation without substitution.
The core purpose is to remove the mandatory review schedules from the two principal 2013 Regulations concerning trafficking.
Furthermore, Regulation 3 eliminates a clause in the Electronic Commerce regulations that dealt with cross-border arrangements between England/Wales and the EU, finding it unnecessary.
Because the changes are minor, no full impact assessment was deemed necessary.
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