Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the decision by United States Customs and Border Protection to issue five Withhold Release Orders on products from China allegedly produced with state-sponsored forced labour in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region; what products have been produced with such forced labour; what assessment they have made of the statement by the government of the United States that ”the Chinese government is engaged in systemic human rights abuses against the Uyghur people and other ethnic and religious minorities”; and what plans they have to take similar action.

We are aware of the United States' Withhold Release Orders on products allegedly produced using forced Uyghur labour. The UK Government remains seriously concerned about the gross human rights violations being perpetrated against Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang, including reports indicating that Uyghurs are being placed into forced labour programmes following "graduation" from the camps. We urge all businesses involved in investing in Xinjiang, or with parts of their supply chains in Xinjiang, to conduct appropriate due diligence to satisfy themselves that their activities do not support, or risk being seen to support, any human rights violations or abuses. We keep our policy under review. We are committed to raising human rights with the Chinese authorities and do so regularly.