Recommendation 2

HM Government · verbatim extract Deferred

The Government shares the Committee’s concern about the presence of forced labour in global supply chains and is committed to working to ensure that the UK market is not complicit in such practices. Building on the principles of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the Government is actively exploring options to strengthen protections. In the Trade Strategy, the Government launched a review of its approach to responsible business conduct policy, focused on the global supply chains of businesses operating in the UK. The review will be a neutral, objective appraisal of policy led by the Department of Business and Trade. It will consider the best way to promote a coordinated approach to responsible business conduct, ensuring businesses respect human rights, labour rights, the environment, and anti-corruption measures across their operations and supply chains, while having due regard to costs on business and the approaches taken by our trading partners. A range of measures are under consideration as part of the review, including many of those referenced by the Committee. Any future action will be carefully calibrated to ensure it supports UK businesses, complies with international obligations, and delivers meaningful outcomes. 3 Leadership in Government JCHR Recommendation 2 2. The Government should consider how it can provide visible leadership and coordination on the issue of forced labour in supply chains within government. (Paragraph 35) Government Response Government departments work together closely to enhance the Government’s approach to tackling forced labour in supply chains. The principal departments involved in this work are the Home Office, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and Cabinet Office. The Home Office is responsible for the Modern Slavery Act 2015, including the ‘Transparency in Supply Chains’ provision, the associated statutory guidance and management of the modern slavery statement registry, which brings modern slavery statements together on a single platform. DBT houses the new Office for Responsible Business Conduct, responsible for tackling supply chain harms including forced labour. DBT also leads on wider business regulation and trade measures, including non-financial reporting, free trade agreements and export controls. DBT has policy responsibility for due diligence in supply chains and import controls, with support from the Home Office and the FCDO. The Fair Work Agency (FWA) will be an executive agency of DBT by April 2026. The creation of the FWA will consolidate existing domestic labour market enforcement functions, including the responsibilities currently carried out by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA). The FWA will provide a single point of contact for workers and businesses to report labour exploitation and related concerns within the UK providing faster, more coordinated action. The FCDO is responsible for the UK’s international approach to eradicating all forms of forced labour in line with achieving Sustainable Development Goal 8.7. The FCDO works with multilateral partners to forge a united global response to eradicating forced labour. It also works bilaterally to deliver a range of regional and country development programmes to reduce forced labour overseas. The FCDO is responsible for engaging internationally to promote adherence to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs). Government departments are responsible for their own procurement decisions, but they operate within a legislative and policy framework led by the Cabinet Office. The Procurement Act which came into force in February 2025 strengthens the exclusion regime in relation to modern slavery to prevent exploitative companies from securing government contracts. The Act also introduced a new central debarment list to further strengthen the Government’s approach to modern slavery in procurement. Suppliers can be investigated for debarment if modern slavery grounds are met and they may be placed on a central debarment list of suppliers who must or may be excluded across the whole of the public sector. In the Clean Energy Industries Sector Plan, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) committed to position social value standards for fair work and ethical supply chains at the heart of the Department’s Growth Mission for clean energy industries. This includes the department supporting supply chain transparency; boosting the health, diversity, and competitiveness of domestic supply chains; and embedding fair and ethical work standards into its own public procurement and non-procurement spend. The Government recognises the importance of a joined-up approach to forced labour and responsible business conduct. To this end, DBT has established senior cross-Whitehall governance to support the RBC Review. Furthermore, there are cross-government Ministe