In the Context of the Agricultural Industry, to what Extent does the UK Government’s ‘Hostile Environment’ Agenda Outweigh the Impact of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 on Irregular Workers?

Abstract

The ‘hostile environment’ agenda of Government has effectively endorsed the deliberate exploitation of irregular migrants in the agricultural industry. This minor project of jurisprudence will provide two arguments in support of this hypothesis. Firstly, the vulnerabilities faced by irregular migrants are reinforced through the xenophobic narrative embodied within the law and the courts. The lack of priority afforded to modern slavery on the UK Policy Agenda has allowed a ‘grey labour market’ (1) to develop. Irregular migrants face a ‘precarity paradox’ and (2) they must avoid the carceral regime of immigration control by entering into unprotected and deliberately exploitative work. Secondly, a lacklustre attempt to remedy the corruption in the horticultural industry proves that the state is preoccupied, capitalising on irregular labour practice in the interests of state capital. Thus, the Government allows the commodification of workers within the supply chain to profit British businesses.