People smuggling

Gangs smuggling Vietnamese kids from Calais to UK for work on cannabis farms - NSPCC

Vietnamese children are being hidden in the Calais ‘Jungle’ camp as cover before being smuggled to Britain where they are subjected to sexual abuse and forced labor, including on cannabis farms.

A new report from the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) warns the ‘Jungle’ is being used as a transit site for people smugglers who hide minors from authorities.

Vietnamese children are thought to make up a significant number of those trafficked from the camp to the UK, where they can be forced into domestic servitude or criminal activities such as cannabis farming.

NSPCC investigators carried out their first official visit to the Calais camp this week amid growing concerns the ‘Jungle’ is being used by international criminal gangs for people trafficking.