Thursday, 23 July 2020
Vernon Coaker, former Member of Parliament for Gedling, Nottinghamshire, has joined the University of Nottingham’s Rights Lab as an Honorary Professor of Modern Slavery Policy.
Building on a long history of national-level policy work on modern slavery, Mr Coaker will collaborate with colleagues in the Rights Lab, as well as the University’s School of Politics and International Relations.
The Rights Lab is a University of Nottingham Beacon of Excellence, and the world’s largest and leading group of modern slavery researchers. As part of his work with the Rights Lab, Mr Coaker will serve as Chair of a new Midlands Antislavery Research Collaborative (the Midlands ARC) that is bringing together more than 100 academics from 19 universities across the Midlands into a new anti-slavery powerhouse.
He also will focus on strategies to help protect children from trafficking, on the role of businesses in tackling modern slavery, and on work with the Rights Lab’s Modern Slavery Evidence Unit to deliver policy-relevant research.
I am absolutely delighted to be joining the University of Nottingham’s Rights Lab, which is at the forefront of work nationally and internationally to tackle modern slavery.
Vernon Coaker joined academics from across the Midlands to launch a new Midlands Antislavery Research Collaboration (Midlands ARC) in May 2020
Mr Coaker continued: "As we have seen, including horrific examples here locally, slavery and exploitation are still major issues. The ongoing research at the University, however, plays a major role in tackling this evil, supporting the front-line and providing much needed evidence to inform policy.I am also proud that such a global leader is based here in Nottingham alongside a new initiative to bring Midlands universities closer together in our anti-slavery work. There are still far too many victims and too much horror and the work done by the Rights Lab never forgets this, which is why I am so pleased to be able to join them."
For 22 years, from 1997 to 2019, Vernon Coaker was the MP for Gedling. During this time he held a number of ministerial roles and opposition ministerial roles, including Minister of State for Policing, Crime and Security, Minister of State for Schools, Shadow Secretary of State for Defence, and Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. Before his 22 years in government, he spent 21 years a teacher in Nottinghamshire.
From 2015 to 2019, he was Co-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery. Mr Coaker is a Trustee of the Human Trafficking Foundation which grew out of the work of the APPG on Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery.
His recent report for the Council of Europe called for more international work to tackle human trafficking, the presence of anti-trafficking commissioners in all countries, and an international Parliamentary network to tackle human trafficking.
I am thrilled to welcome Vernon to our University and to the Rights Lab. He is a real anti-slavery leader, and his work on combatting modern slavery has galvanised many researchers and stakeholders across the UK and internationally. We were honoured to work with him during his former role in Parliament, and are very excited to now build new initiatives around our shared commitment to understanding and tackling one of the great human rights issues of our time.
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More information is available from Katie Andrews in the Press Office at the University of Nottingham at katie.andrews@nottingham.ac.uk
Notes to editors:
About the University of Nottingham
Ranked 32 in Europe and 16th in the UK by the QS World University Rankings: Europe 2024, the University of Nottingham is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.
Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 – the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 – and by the Daily Mail University Guide 2024.
The university is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The university is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the second most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2022 report by High Fliers Research.
We lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, a pioneering collaboration between the city’s two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home.
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