The UK government has committed to strengthening section 54 (transparency in supply chains requirements) of the Modern Slavery Act.
The government is now gathering views on proposed measures intended to increase transparency and compliance, improve reporting quality and extend the scope of the legislation through its open consultation: Transparency in supply chains.
In the years since it came into force, the UK’s landmark transparency in supply chains legislation has been a crucial part of the UK's commitment to end modern slavery by 2030. With the 2030 goal approaching, it is time to take stock of the UK’s leadership in this area and ambitions for the future.
The government is determined to ensure a level playing field for responsible businesses by recognising effective anti-slavery activity and a commitment to improvement, but also by targeting non-compliance and further embedding the reporting requirements. It is interested in hearing from supply chain leaders how we can best improve the quality of reporting, ensure compliance and apply the requirements to the public sector. In doing so, we want to ensure our approach is effective, proportionate and straightforward, and we welcome your views on how to achieve this.
Under the Modern Slavery Act 2015, the UK became the first country to require organisations to publicly report on the steps they are taking to prevent modern slavery in their operations and supply chains. This landmark legislation was designed to empower investors, consumers and NGOs to scrutinise the efforts being taken by large businesses to prevent forced labour and protect workers in their operations and supply chains.
The consultation focuses on proposals to make reporting of specific topics compulsory, pointing out that in 2018 the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre reported that while 41 per cent of FTSE 100 reported on their slavery and trafficking policies, only 17 per cent reported on effectiveness, highlighting inconsistency across the reporting areas and a lack of uptake in voluntarily covering the Home Office’s suggested content.
The questions cover what is reported, the time it takes to collect the information, and what information should it be mandatory to report.
A separate set of questions look a whether there would be any challenges associating with requiring organisations to publish their modern slavery statement on the government registry, and what features should a central registry include.
The consultation ends on 17th September 2019.