Recommendation 47

HM Government · verbatim extract Accepted

The Government is taking steps to address reports of forced labour in clean energy supply chains. This includes strengthened procurement rules and support for industry-led transparency initiatives, such as the Solar Stewardship Initiative. Great British Energy will follow strict ethical standards in procurement and work with civil society to help ensure supply chains are free from exploitation. DESNZ issued the Statement of Strategic Priorities to Great British Energy in September 2025. The Statement of Strategic Priorities outlined that, in line with measures set out in the Great British Energy Act, Great British Energy should proactively work to deliver on the government’s commitments to tackle forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking in its business and supply chains. It also outlined how the Secretary of State expects Great British Energy to become a sector leader in ethical supply chains. Great British Energy must develop, publish and deliver a Strategic Plan which reflects the Statement of Strategic Priorities. Great British Energy’s performance will be measured against the priorities set out in the Statement of Strategic Priorities. Over the next 12 months, Great British Energy will be required to comply with existing legislation, including the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and the Procurement Act 2023. Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 places a requirement on businesses with a turnover of £36m or more to publish an annual modern slavery statement, setting out the steps they have taken to prevent modern slavery in their operations and supply chain. The Procurement Act 2023 will enable public sector contracting authorities, including Great British Energy, to reject bids and terminate contracts with suppliers and organisations which are known to use forced labour themselves or anywhere in their supply chain. In addition to its legal obligations, Great British Energy is taking forward other commitments to drive efforts in this area. This included a commitment to appoint a senior individual in the organisation to lead on ethical supply chains and modern slavery. Baroness Frances O’Grady has been appointed Senior Accountable Non-Executive Director for Ethical Supply Chains and will oversee the development of the organisation’s Supply Chain Risk Framework. Great British Energy are also recruiting an Ethical Supply Chains Lead with responsibility for embedding standards. In addition to embedding ethical standards at the board and operational levels, Great British Energy will also engage with industry and civil society to raise standards, explore UK-based alternatives to high-risk supply chains and work internationally to align with progressive global partners, including the Solar Stewardship Initiative. Great British Energy will publish an annual report of its activities together with its audited accounts after the end of each financial year. The first Great British Annual Report and Accounts is scheduled to be laid before Parliament in July 2026. Great British Energy will set out further updates on its progress in tackling forced labour over the next 12 months and looks forward to continuing engagement with the committee. 14 The UK’s demand for critical minerals JCHR Recommendation 25 25. The Critical Minerals Strategy should outline specific steps that the Government will take to address the UK’s reliance on critical minerals which are sourced from regions with high risks of forced labour and child labour. (Paragraph 243) Government Response The UK Government places a high priority on mining and mineral processing being carried out to the highest environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards. We are committed to the sustainable development of natural resources in the UK and overseas. The new Critical Minerals Strategy, expected in 2025, will refine our approach to responsible and transparent supply chains. 15 The solar roll out JCHR Recommendation 26 26. GBE and other public buyers must ensure that solar procurement decisions are made on the basis of independent assessments and not rely solely on the SSI to provide assurance of supply chains. (Paragraph 256) Government Response The Government welcomes the work of the Solar Stewardship Initiative (SSI) in promoting transparency and accountability within the solar supply chain through the use of assessments driven by independent audits. However, procurement decisions are not made solely on the basis of SSI assessments, and the Government has no intention of moving in this direction. Under the Procurement Act 2023, public sector contracting authorities are empowered to act independently to reject bids or terminate contracts with suppliers found to be using forced labour in their supply chains. Procurement Policy Note 009 (“Tackling modern slavery in government supply chains”) reinforces the need for in-scope organisations to embed modern slavery due diligence levers across the full commercial lifecycle. As a state-owned company, Great B