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Members of the House of Lords are to vote on two new laws criminalising modern-day slavery later today.
The amendment forms part of the Coroners and Justice Bill, which reaches second day of report stage in the Lords.
Trading in slaves has been illegal since the 19th century, but there are currently no laws that specifically criminalise holding a person in servitude or subjecting a person to forced labour.
Civil liberties and anti-slavery campaign groups have urged parliamentarians to approve the measures.
Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, said: "In an age when new criminal offences have flown out of Westminster like confetti, the lack of an effective anti-slavery law is a gaping hole in the protection of the vulnerable.
"We urge parliamentarians of all stripes to join together in supporting this amendment and honouring the tradition of William Wilberforce."
Wilberforce, an MP and social reformer, led the abolition of the slave trade in 1807.
The proposed new laws would make holding someone in servitude punishable by a maximum of 14 years, and subjecting someone to forced labour punishable by up to seven years.
According to Anti-slavery International there are an estimated 12.3 million people are forced labour worldwide, with 360,000 in industrialised countries such as the UK.
Hundreds of people are thought to be subjected to slavery in the UK without being trafficked.
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