A new Government bill on modern-day slavery introduces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment for human trafficking, in a bid to clamp down on a problem which is believed to have increased in recent years.

The draft Modern Day Slavery Bill sets out the Government's plans to tackle the problem of people being trafficked into the UK, pulling together into a single act the offences used to prosecute slave-drivers.

Home Secretary Theresa May said it was impossible to know exactly how many people are being held in conditions of servitude, but referrals to official agencies suggest that the numbers are growing. It is hoped the changes in the bill will increase the number of prosecutions from the single figures seen in recent years.