UK Supply Chains: Uyghur Forced Labour

Debate between John Slinger and Douglas Alexander

Tuesday 3rd December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Alexander]

I thank the hon. Lady for her observation, and for the characteristically calm wisdom with which she spoke about issues on which I think there is a high degree of consensus across the House. Given that we have been in government for five months, it is appropriate that we review the effectiveness of the Modern Slavery Act, which, in its day, was clearly a pioneering piece of legislation that commanded support across the House. In that sense, the review and the desire to understand the impact of the Act are informed by more recent innovations, such as those in the United States, the EU and Canada. I can assure the hon. Lady that alongside the trade strategy that we are publishing and the industrial strategy that we aim to publish in the spring, we are already carefully considering the critical elements of other legislation and seeing whether there is scope for strengthening the approach taken by the UK.

[John Slinger (Rugby) (Lab)]

Does my right hon. Friend agree that self-regulation, to which my hon. Friend the Member for Rotherham (Sarah Champion) referred, is often a euphemism for minimal or, indeed, no regulation? Is he confident that current legislation is sufficient to compel businesses operating in the UK to address the risks of modern slavery and, most importantly, the risks to the human rights of the people being exploited?

[Mr Alexander]

Notwithstanding the concerns that have been expressed in the Chamber about the existing statutory framework, we need to send a clear and unequivocal signal that no company in the United Kingdom that operates under the existing statutory framework should have any forced labour whatsoever in its supply chain. There are already rules in place to compel companies to publish statements demonstrating that they have met their very clear legal obligations, not least in relation to the exploitation of which my hon. Friend speaks.