Fayed accusers trafficking victims risk denial under UK credibility tests, commissioner warns
Anti-slavery commissioner Eleanor Lyons has warned that credibility tests in the UK's immigration and asylum bill could wrongly deny Fayed accusers recognition as trafficking victims.
Fayed accusers trafficking victims risk denial under UK credibility tests, commissioner warns
The independent anti-slavery commissioner Eleanor Lyons has warned that Fayed accusers - women who allege abuse by the late Mohamed Al Fayed - could be wrongly denied recognition as trafficking victims under credibility tests in the UK's immigration and asylum bill. Lyons said the measures were fundamentally unfair and could deny support to many more victims, including those allegedly abused by Al Fayed.
How the credibility tests work
Under the legislation, Home Office officials must treat any delay in claiming modern slavery or human trafficking as damaging to a person's credibility. The bill also requires decision-makers to treat a range of features of an account as reasons for disbelief:
- any inaccuracy in a person's account
- any inconsistency or omission
- any striking similarity to a claim made by someone else
The government says it introduced the tests to close what it characterises as opportunities to misuse the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) and to speed up the removal of illegal migrants. The NRM is the UK system for identifying potential victims of modern slavery and human trafficking.
Lyons said the tests effectively tell victims they must come forward in a timely fashion - a standard she noted has not yet been defined - or face questions about their credibility.
Why the Al Fayed cases fit the tests badly
Lyons said the Al Fayed cases would be particularly concerning under the new rules, because a lot of time has passed since the alleged abuse, victims were exploited in similar ways, and trauma may prevent exact recall. She added that the tests would harm survivors of sexual violence more generally, who often suffer memory loss as a result of their trauma and fear reprisals from their abusers.
Several women who allege abuse by Fayed fear the measures would undermine investigations into what they describe as the late billionaire's international trafficking network.
Among them is Holly Johnson. She says that while working for Harrods and at offices Fayed kept on Park Lane, she was sexually abused and trafficked. In her view, the tests would re-victimise survivors, because Fayed operated a specific trafficking strategy - so accounts that resemble one another should not count against the women who give them:
To say someone shouldn't be believed because their situation is too similar to another victim of that same abuser is absurd
The collective No One Above, made up of Fayed's alleged abuse survivors, said many women delayed reporting their exploitation until after his death in 2023 and after Harrods declared in 2024 that non-disclosure agreements would not be enforced. Elizabeth, an NOA member who has been recognised by the Home Office as a trafficking victim, said it took Harrods' NDA declaration to finally make her feel safe to speak out, believing that no one could take her house away for doing so.
Pelham Spong, who says she was trafficked in Paris on Fayed's orders in 2008 before being sent to London to be sexually assaulted by him, waited years before reporting. She did not go to the Met police until 2017, fearing her life was going to be ruined. Spong, whose case is being investigated by French police, said that as a 23-year-old with no money and no resources behind her, speaking out against a billionaire seemed unfathomable because he was so powerful.
Charities fear the system is weakened
Anti-trafficking organisations have criticised the bill's focus. Eleanora Fais, anti-trafficking monitoring group coordinator at Anti-Slavery International, said that if the primary aim of legislation is immigration enforcement, safeguarding will come in second place. She said the NRM was meant to help survivors disclose what happened to them, get support and, if they choose, cooperate with police, and that introducing criteria to weaken the system would stop that from happening.
Hilary Agg, head of policy and research at the anti-slavery charity Unseen, said the measures would allow human trafficking to thrive in the UK because fewer victims would be identified. She added that the tests would harm not only immigrants but also the majority of trafficking and slavery victims, who are British nationals.
What the government and companies say
A Home Office spokesperson said the immigration and asylum bill will strengthen protections and crack down on exploitation while reducing opportunities for improper use of the system. The spokesperson added that the credibility considerations in the bill are well-balanced and contain appropriate safeguards that will enhance modern slavery decision-making.
Harrods says it backs survivors seeking justice and remains in close contact with the Met police over its investigation. The Ritz Paris has said it views the reported allegations with grave concern and treats them with the highest seriousness. The Fayed estate has been approached for comment.
