The United Kingdom announced new measures[1] to help prevent and root out modern slavery in supply chains this week. The measures are to strengthen the landmark U.K. Modern Slavery Act of 2015, which ushered in a wave of civic and legislative actions[2] around the world, including the Australian Modern Slavery Act. The measures include:[3]
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“Public bodies which have a budget of £36 million or more, including local authorities in England and Wales, will be required to regularly report on the steps they have taken to prevent modern slavery in their supply chains.”
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“Organisations with a budget of £36 million or more in all sectors to publish their modern slavery statements on a new digital government reporting service.”
The U.K. government is also considering one enforcement body for all employment-related issues, including modern slavery. Once this single body is created, the U.K. government also stated that it would be looking into stronger civil penalties for noncompliance with the Modern Slavery Act.