Home Office accused of deliberately leaving anti-slavery post unfilled

Sara Thornton, who left the role of independent anti-slavery commissioner at the end of April, said it was a ‘critical time’ to have someone in post. Photograph: Martin Godwin/The Guardian

The Home Office is accused of deliberately failing to appoint a new anti-slavery commissioner to avoid scrutiny while trying to push through legislation on the issue.

It has been a legal requirement to have an independent commissioner since the post was created as part of the Modern Slavery Act in 2015.