The legacy of Morecambe Bay
Claire Walford
Earlier this year, Lois visited Morecambe Bay where 23 Chinese migrant cockle pickers drowned after becoming trapped by fast-rising tides.
The tragedy left a lasting mark on the nation, bringing the realities of labour exploitation and modern slavery into public consciousness. It also prompted significant legislative reform and is now seen as a turning point in the UK's approach to tackling modern slavery.
What happened?
On the evening of 5 February 2004, 23 Chinese labourers (mostly men in their 20s and 30s) drowned while harvesting cockles off the coast. The workers had been trafficked via containers into Liverpool and were hired out by organised criminal gangs, to pick cockles for just £5 for 25kg of cockles or 20p per kg.
During the investigation and trial, it emerged that the labourers spoke little or no English, were untrained, unfamiliar with the area and probably had no knowledge of the risk of the tides. On the night of the tragedy, British cockle pickers tried to warn the Chinese group of the risk of the tides by tapping their watches and trying to speak with them but to no avail.
There was an outpouring of public sympathy and anger, with many people understanding for the first time the nature and horror of modern slavery. It became clear that, even in the UK, vulnerable workers could be subjected to slavery and exploitation: deceived and controlled by criminal gangs, held in debt bondage, forced to work in unsafe working conditions, and paid a pittance.
As a result of the disaster, the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) was established in 2005 with a mission to regulate labour providers, investigate exploitation, and protect vulnerable workers. (In April 2026, the GLAA was replaced by the Fair Work Agency, the Government’s centralised agency responsible for enforcing employment rights.)
In memory
By the beach in Morecambe, there is a plaque, containing a poem written in memory of the 23 victims. It encourages everyone to remember the workers who picked cockles “for you and me” and the terror of the night of 5th February 2004 – the panic, the cold, the darkness, the “living hell.” It also calls on people to be kind and “remember with love, not fear”.
During her visit, Lois spoke with some people sat near the memorial, and they recalled with horror how the news of that fateful morning shocked the whole community. Now pickers are mostly based on the other side of the bay, but the grief lives on.
Lois adds: “We understand more than ever about exploitation in our food systems, both here in the UK and what we source from abroad. However, we still need the reminder to consider and observe the people who live and work in our communities, from growing and preparing food to building our homes or working for us through cleaning or other services. They may need a kind word, neighbourly respect, but also safety systems like training and alerts.
“While we in the UK have better systems for protecting workers, many nations where we source our food and clothes from continue in suffering because of our cheap buying choices. We have a long way to go until all our purchases can be guaranteed ‘slave-free’. For now, when we eat, dress or buy, we must heed the call: “Oh gentle people be so kind, Always keep us in your minds.”
The Bay of Words by Laverne
From dawn to dusk and through the night,
They worked and riddled out of sight.
Far away on distant shores,
Men and women do their chores.
Families so very far to see,
Pick cockles for you and me.
A fruitful day as some would say,
We picked cockles on Morecambe Bay.
Such success we trawled for more,
On this lovely majestic shore.
Are we illegal? No we are not!
Travelled migrants we forgot.
Just how savage can life be?
For each and all including me!
In utter panic we lost our way,
And on the bay we had to stay.
The light went dim we should have known,
Morecambe Bay is now our home.
Oh gentle people be so kind,
Always keep us in your minds.
We worked so hard to get our pay, Oh good lord what a way!
Cold... Wet... And in the dark, we become the bay.
Remembered as part of the majestic Morecambe Bay.
To end our day and nights too,
On Morecambe Bay so loved by you!
Sunshine come and light the bay,
We won't see another day.
Look out and you will see,
Passing migrants just like me!
Please remember how we fell,
It was just a living hell.
So see the birds up in the sky,
They take our souls and make them fly.
Across the world from whence they came,
Sharing in the bays great fame.
Remember us with love not fear!
We like you, Now live here!