The table shows the numbers of defendants prosecuted, convicted and sentenced for slavery and trafficking offences, on a principal offence basis, between 2009 and 2015. The figures do not cover instances where perpetrators of modern slavery have been prosecuted and convicted using non-slavery offences, or where their illegal activities were disrupted by other means.

The criminal justice provisions in the Modern Slavery Act were commenced on 31 July 2015, so prosecutions under the Act only apply to criminal conduct alleged to have taken place since that date. Offences occurring before the commencement of the Modern Slavery Act will still be prosecuted under the previous legislation. Despite the very recent introduction of the new offences and the time it takes for law enforcement to bring complex cases involving modern slavery to trial, 12 defendants had already been prosecuted under the Act in 2015.