Measures to strengthen the steps companies must take to combat modern slavery in their operations and supply chains feature in the UK government’s response to a 2019 consultation on supply chain transparency featured in Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. Published on 22 Sep 2020, the measures include mandatory reporting on modern slavery and human trafficking, the introduction of a single reporting date, and consideration of the options for strengthening enforcement for companies’ noncompliance. No timeframe was announced for proposing the necessary legislative measures.
The Modern Slavery Act 2015 requires certain companies to publish an annual statement detailing the steps they are taking to prevent modern slavery. The requirement to submit a statement currently applies to commercial organizations with a minimum annual turnover of £36 million — the turnover threshold remains unchanged. The 2019 consultation invited input on measures that included strengthening the transparency of supply chain reporting and expanding the requirement to report on modern slavery to the public sector.
Africa