Source · Select Committees · Human Rights (Joint Committee)
Recommendation 40
40
Accepted
Public procurement carries a higher risk of exposure to forced labour.
Conclusion
Public procurement carries a higher risk of exposure to forced labour. (Conclusion, Paragraph 211)
Government response summary AI-generated
The government responds to the conclusion about the higher risk of forced labor in public procurement by detailing the Procurement Act, coming into force in February 2025, which strengthens the exclusion regime and introduces a central debarment list to prevent exploitative companies from securing government contracts, thereby addressing the identified risk.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government · verbatim extract
Accepted
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.
Read the full response on Parliament ↗